In the Realm of the Dead
by independant-and-complicated
Summary: We follow Selene in the first two centuries of her life, but not just her, what her arrival has stirred amongst the elders and members of the Coven. Lots of blood and gore in places, be warned. Re-edited!
1. Awash with blood

"It's alright, child" he whispered soothingly. He exchanged a look with his lieutenant and raised an eyebrow with a slight nod. Kraven, handsome in his armour and silent in his movements, nodded back and left them.

"What is your name?"

"I… Selene" she stammered, although bloody massacre was all around them (blood was dripping from the ceiling), he was stunned; she was somehow steady, like _someone else_ just as beautiful and strong, but in a time when she had adored him and obeyed his word…

Selene looked at him back, his eyes were unnaturally bright, his embrace, everything about him, was… too strong, too unyielding…

"What are you?" she asked, slightly breathless

"The enemies of those who killed your family," said the man, and almost on cue, a man walked into the barn, dragging something behind him, "this, Selene, is my lieutenant Kraven, and that" he added, with disgust, "is a Lycan, we were following its pack for days, and we nearly had them when they came upon your house…"

"Why?" she breathed, gazing at it. It was a wretched-looking thing. She had no idea had been killed a few minutes ago, stabbed through the neck to slow the transformation back into human.

"They are a vicious, uncontrollable race" spat the man who held her, "they spread their affliction on innocent men and women, and hunger after chaos and destruction. However," he added, turning back to Selene, who, just like _her_, her eyes were twin faucets, leaking a steady stream of anger, "we are the ones who war against them, who keep order"

"Who are you?" she asked again, the man sighed and nodded to his lieutenant and led the girl outside the barn

"You would call us vampires," he said in a tired voice, and noticed Selene neither flinched nor made any sort of reaction as they walked, "as you can imagine, glimpses of our race in the wrong time and wrong place have given us an unsavoury reputation"

Selene could easily imagine it; a vampire standing amongst a household of bodies, perhaps even weeping over a friend, eyes ablaze and fangs exposed from the battle…

"Make me one of you" she asked, stopping and grabbing his forearm, which was like holding a cloth-covered metal bar

"Are you sure, Selene, there is no return, it is true that we must survive on blood and cannot step in the sun"

"Make me one of you"

"I understand your plight, for your strength, I shall award you more"

After biting her, neatly missing the main jugular and other essential, messy, fast-bleeding vessels, he then bit his wrist and offered to her.

"You must, if you are to have the strength to avenge your family" he said, and felt her mouth close on the wound and suck. It was a nearly enjoyable feeling, it made only a little impact on his own strength, but it was a gratifying feeling; by his blood she would be bound to him, ever obedient, but stronger than all his other lieutenants and soldiers. He could not have awarded out such strength to anyone lightly, but when he looked at her he someone he desperately needed back.

Lycans will pay for taking my daughter, he thought in the deeper recesses of his mind, and smiled at the irony; only this time her 'love' will cost them far more dearly than… _hers_ had…

When she finally went unconscious, he picked her up and turned to Kraven, who held a torch and the flames beginning to consume the house behind him. Kraven looked quite hungrily at the prize in his master's arms.

"Your loyalty shall again be rewarded" he said to him

Kraven nodded

"My lord, may I…?" he still looked at Selene unconscious in Viktor's arms

"For now Kraven, she shall sleep, and when she wakes, you shall ask her – I do not think you could force her" he answered smiling, and they walked away into the forest.


	2. Anger management

What a mind job…

Selene woke. She was in a place she truly believed was a burial chamber, the stone walls familiar and daunting; it was like one of the big tombs her father had been hired for…

'The first few days, if not years,' said a voice behind her, 'are the most testing'

She threw herself into his arms and buried her head into his chest, and for what felt like hours, cried. It was an awful, heavy cry where the body appeared to try and claw each tear back into itself, leaving her exhausted with every sob, even her own breathing was hard, and somehow it seemed to be doing very little for her relief.

'Selene' murmured Viktor, who had seated her back on her table-bed thing and was supporting her a little stiffly through the whole thing, 'you will find this very difficult, and it is also a bodily change. You will have noticed; each time you breathe it feels like only very the barest amount of air is getting through, and you'll have noticed nothing at all is easy'

Selene felt like a giant, stony bruise, each movement a struggle, a pain and exhaustion, and then she had to do things like blink, and breathe, all over again.

'Is it always?' she asked, leaning on his chest as his arms held her

'No, you will find that soon, things you could never have imagined doing are possible…'

'I need…' started Selene, but couldn't think. She wasn't hungry, nor really was it like being thirsty although it was just as urgent and her whole body cried out for something, it was a desperate need and yet she didn't know what…

'Let me see your eyes' said Viktor, and a glance confirmed what he suspected, and he nodded to a guard outside the door.

'Am I in a dungeon?' asked Selene, Viktor didn't answer but the guard brought in a cup. What Selene was too confused and physically wretched to sense was that just outside the door, being carried away by one of Kraven's men, was a man, bound and gagged, with a six-inch deep knife wound in his neck. Viktor simply gave the cup (warmed on the stove for half an hour) to Selene, who drank it greedily.

'It is blood, Selene' he said heavily. On his first night he had slaughtered his first love and wife, his cousin and his young family and all the servants. A curse from Markus was a devastatingly harsh gift to learn and control. At least he had got rid of his cousin in the bargain…

Selene put the cup on the table and nodded, staring at the floor.

'I knew what you are; I've drunk blood from your very veins' she replied simply

'It is all we can survive on' said Viktor

'Life itself' murmured Selene

There was a silence, there was a beautiful light, golden feeling spreading through Selene. It didn't assuage the deep, awful calling in her but it did soften and drown it out, she felt better than she had ever felt in her life, even on the day she had held her baby nieces for the first time…

Viktor, who had centuries of social and psychological experience, put his hand on hers, noting she had eased up considerably and, though she would not have noticed, had not needed to breathe. He seemed to anticipate everything from her thoughts down to her every move.

'I shall escort you to your living quarters' he said, getting up. He made a small mental note to himself as they walked through the corridors and stairs.

Selene was looking at everything, from the few other vampires around to the decoration of the place. Much of it was things like pictures (which were very, very accurate which she was not used to), odds and ends like statues that she was certain came from other countries, but then again design which she had thought to be foreign was actually a Celtic design found in the caves they were preparing for a rich lord's tomb.

Selene was shown to the room at the very top of the house. Viktor liked them to have their own space to readjust to 'being alive in an unfamiliar fashion'.

Selene was left alone, with nothing but a bed, two tables which respectively had a vase of flowers and a water basin and a jug on them, and a mirror with a wooden frame was put on the wall. Looking at herself in it she noted something was… not exactly wrong, but she noted her canine teeth were a little longer and quite a lot sharper, and finally noticing, she realised her eyes were still dark brown but they had very odd blue tendrils like blue ink spattered in shards amongst them.

Someone knocked on her door. Answering it she recognised the man who had been there – that night.

'Good evening' he said in a fluid voice

'And to you, sir' she answered automatically. Internally, she noticed her nervousness as was proper for a lady of her age around men of his age was absent. She let him walk in and take the stool beside her bed.

'I came to offer my apology for that night,' he began, 'if we had only been faster we would not have only saved you but you and your family might not have known about…'

'Sir, I do not think it your fault' cut in Selene, an edge on her voice, clearly thinking of the ones who were.

'Viktor gave you… a lot of his own blood' said Kraven conversationally. Selene nodded with her eyes lowered, a meek habit she would soon grow out of, but noticed the man's face had changed. Had become 'carefully blank', the same look someone gave you when they tried to sell you short

'It is uncommon, that being what I meant' added Kraven, looking directly at her

'It is an honour' said Selene, now much more on her guard – what was he after?

'I also wished to tell you,' he said standing up but keeping the same distance away, 'however sorry I am for your family, it was a cruel and needless death for them, I am glad you have joined us'

Selene nodded and bade him goodnight. She didn't know if she was going to sleep but she was certain, from all the vampires that could have approached and hadn't, Kraven's visit was odd. Even for a vampire.

That night, she dreamt. Her nieces were being swallowed by enormous wolves, and her father was shouting outside. He suddenly went silent, and as if he had screamed in her ear, Selene woke with a bolt and immediately felt for a candle. Not finding one where she expected, and finding her environment a strange one, she ran to the window, where by the quality of light, the sun was near the horizon.

In a blind panic, she opened the shutters and gazed outside, and finding she was far too far from the ground, in a place she didn't know, she then realised it was late evening, and to her complete shock, she felt the light itself drive into her very bones and burn its way through her.

Three vampires ran in to answer her scream. She had then screamed and attacked them in her panic. It wasn't until they backed away and Viktor appeared (this time _expecting_ the girl to run to him, which only one other girl had ever done before) that her memory began to return.

'Bring her blood' Viktor commanded, and the vampires disappeared.

'Where are we?' demanded Selene

'At my home' said Viktor

'What's happening?' she asked more urgently

'The sun will always burn you; it is unfortunate you were bitten just as the summer was breaking'

Selene backed out of his embrace and felt pieces of memories fall into place.

'I am…' she said blankly, and automatically brought the cup now in her hand to her lips. She thought nothing of what she was drinking, Viktor was pleased with this; her particular adjustments to shock and new situations were very fluid and smooth, in her semi-conscious state in the dungeon she had remembered both that she had drunk blood to be where she was now and had attached that memory to being alive, and now it was there in her unconscious mind she would make very little fuss of anything as shocking as that should be to her.

'Why did your sergeant visit me last night?' she asked him, having drained the cup

Viktor frowned. No one was to approach a newly bitten vampire, especially one like Selene who… well… just especially Selene.

'I will speak to him' he promised aloud

'I do not understand; he said you gave me a lot of your blood, it was unusual?'

Viktor went to her bed and sat down. Selene took the stool.

'It is possible to be turned by a single bite,' he explained, 'no extra provisions needed. But for one such as you, who has seen what battles we fight, I thought it wise to give you more strength, for revenge'

Revenge… Selene had never been one to go for revenge, her father had always encouraged a more peaceful attitude, but then, his peaceful attitude had failed to protect himself and his own family…

'When can I…?'

'As soon as you have had training' said Viktor 'for now, perhaps we should introduce you to the mansion'

Selene had been in mansions before, visiting with her father to lords and politicians who wanted something grander then a cave or a large gravestone. This was much like any other house she had seen.

Viktor brushed through the rooms, where small groups of vampires sat and spoke together, and a lot of them looking at the new arrival.

'Ah, Kirsten' said Viktor, and a girl in the corner with a crossbow with brown hair came over. Some kind of wordless transaction took place but Selene missed nearly all of it aside from a blink and a nod from Viktor and a quizzical look from Kirsten. Kirsten indicated with twitch of the head that Selene should come with her.

'My name is Kirsten,' she said, in a heavy accent, 'I am the leader of the Death Dealers, and you have been made to fight, so you will train'

'These over here,' she added, directing her gaze over to a group all drinking and looking very at ease, 'they are accessories of the council, they… do as the reigning Elder commands'

Selene saw them and noticed Kirsten's disparaging accent. She also noticed Kraven was looking over at the group and it her, his eyes burning.

'That is Kraven, Viktor's second-oldest living servant – we do not expect of him to be a soldier nor a member of the court, but be warned, he likes to think he is a god of both worlds'

A man hurried past as they entered a corridor that went both to a flight of stairs and down a passage to their right.

'That is the Elder's historian, Tanis, look well for we do not see him often'

The man kept looking back at them and hurrying away

They went down the passage and turned left to face a door which sat underneath the stairs and a pace away from another room.

'Watch carefully; the court members would like to know this code, and we say you may enter when you have fought for the right'

There were nine stones set in the left side pane of the door, and two carved gargoyles on each side, and there was a sequence of stones to be pressed and the left gargoyle's horn was twisted

'Where are you from?' asked Selene as they descended a set of wooden stairs

'Scandinavia, I lost my family three centuries ago, much like you had'

'Viktor saved you?'

'Viktor found me, I was under the floor, he – he was in two minds of whether to change me'

'Why?' asked Selene, thinking that was not like the Viktor she had seen on her night she changed

'He seemed to think I was a threat,' said Kirsten, conveying her own confusion, 'I screamed at him, asking where the beasts had gone, and he seemed to come to his senses or to realise I was not part of what had happened, but he then took me back, and waited for me to be older until he bit me.'

Selene nodded. She thought how a girl a few years younger than Kirsten looked (which aside from her expression could not have been more than twenty, younger Selene was herself) could possibly have seemed threatening.

'This is Aasta and Aata, the twins' she said, nodding to a man and woman in black sparring, 'that in the corner is Ladarius' she added, pointing to a man in the upper right corner of the room, pointing a crossbow at a rat wandering the floor, 'there are four others on patrol, Leo, Pedro, Phoebe and Helen'

'Rumour has it Viktor gave you his blood?' said a voice behind them, the twins had come to join them

'He did' she replied guardedly

'My brother listens too much to the brats upstairs' said Aasta, and Selene kept her reactions in check; they were truly beautiful. They were not exactly slender, but they were graceful-looking, with dark skin, long dark hair (Aasta's was French-plaited in an S all over her scalp into a plait at the back) and their odd black clothes. She looked in fascination as their eyes changed colour back to dark.

'How much?' asked Aata, giving his sister a small smile and a shoulder-shove

'Um, I don't know'

'How long did he make you drink, how many swallows roughly?' asked Aasta

'Um… I think five, or more, I think more' said Selene quizzically, and the twins exchanged rather stunned expressions with Kirsten

'Well, he must have favoured you' said Aasta, looking at her with a curious expression, as if Selene would know and tell her

'I don't know' she said

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Kraven was sipping wine with Viktor,who had called for this meeting.

'I have been hearing of the court members causing 'mysterious deaths', Kraven' he said, standing next to the fire, while Kraven was sat near it, Viktor's favourite interrogation position, 'they confirm that you authorised it, such as the en-mass slaughter tastefully set in a meat factory!'

'Yes, my lord'

'A killing of that degree, as you know, is forbidden!' he snarled, turning to his servant, 'You dare to use my authority, and if the over-reaching didn't stretch far enough, you bring Selene to it?'

'I thought…'

'Silence!' snapped Viktor, his eyes going violet with rage, 'Everyone has noticed how well Selene has been taking the transformation but she has barely been with us long enough to begin to understand what being immortal _means_, and will still think and feel like a human, and you bring her to witness the _bloodbath_ of England's past decade!'

'She took the situation well, my lord' said Kraven, 'she seems to grow stronger by the day'

'She must be' said Viktor, almost automatically, the words softly spoken, more a thought than a response. Sonia had often had comments like that made about her. It was a wonderful feeling to see her walking about again; it eased his heart considerably to see her face…

He had been still as only a vampire could be for about an hour before he resurfaced, Kraven had not moved.

'Kirsten tells me there are Lykens hiding in the woods. Send her and Selene with them'

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Seven years, Selene thought vaguely. She was wiping her sword, a foot on a dead Lyken; the Death Dealers were finishing the last of a rather seedy alliance between some French and Spanish Lykens.

The European and Middle-Eastern areas were always very difficult, so large a space and so many places to hide, especially for locally turned Lykens against strangers in their own territory.

Sheathing her sword she looked up and saw Phoebe tending Leo, who had been gashed badly across the stomach. They had bandaged it and he was sucking hungrily from a leather skin of blood, pigs blood if he was lucky or the cows blood they had for emergencies. By the grimace it was probably cows. Phoebe, tending gently to him, didn't seem to know or care she had a gash on the shoulder blades and across the back of the neck.

'Here, sit still' she said, steadying her friend with a hand and beginning the process of soaking her wound in blood and tying it up with bandages.

'Don't worry' said Phoebe, trying to get up

'I can see a rib and your spine, you're lucky it's not worse, just stay still' said Selene, and used a knife to cut open her armour so she could access it better.

The past few months had been good. Northern France in winter, they could even walk around in the day, and the villagers loved them. Better the devil you know, said the village elder, who then paid for their accommodation in the village inn. Selene had been impatient with any attention or curiosity coming her way and spent a lot of time on watch in the bell tower of the church.

Selene tied the knot in the bandage and sent the others on to get some rest, especially since it looked like it would be a clear dawn today and that was too much risk. She went straight back to the tower, and found Kirsten was following.

'It is strange, I have not seen such a gathering for decades' she said quietly

'It will happen sometimes, they must be getting desperate'

The vampires were learning where the money was in this world, and it wasn't hard to tap into it. As a result they were superbly equipped, it was 1419, armour was constantly becoming more and more efficient, blades and weapons were, partly due to experience, getting better also. The Lykens appeared to expect to get different results by doing the same thing every time. It was true they were lethally strong and fast in their changed form, but a crossbow with silver tips that broke off made them much easier to deal with.

They scaled the tower and sat in silence watching. Eventually, as the sun came up (at which point they had closed the shutters), Pedro came up through the stairs.

'Viktor sends word' he said, holding a letter. It was a pigeon-sent message.

New attacks in Finland – go.

Selene didn't smile, but she felt a familiar stir. Back on the trail for revenge, when she had put down the last Lyken she could finally feel even, rumour was Viktor wanted them back under his control, she had heard of the days when they lived in a great castle in a mountain, when Lykens served them as slaves so their savagery was contained and the world protected from William's curse. She could not help but wish she could have had a day with the guards who had failed their duty, but Viktor had had them burned alive by locking them out of the gates so the wolves or the sun could have them. There wasn't much you could add to that, but Selene sometimes wondered…

'Selene'

Selene realised she had been staring into space, and she could feel her teeth lengthened.

'You really have to learn some anger control' said Kirsten. She had watched Selene in battle, she simply took on another form, pushing away assistance, possessive over every kill, open greed and desire to kill as many as she could reach. At the end of the battle she had cut the tendons of the Lyken beneath her and with no more expression other than her ice-coloured eyes slid the sword from beneath the rib-cage and just kept pushing until the point came out through between the collarbone and the shoulder blades. There was fighting Lykens like Death Dealers did, and then there was the deliberate, rather chilling killing of Lykens, killing to watch them die, _making_ them _die_. It was controlled, and often rather efficient, sometimes you wouldn't notice she was doing it, but occasionally like today she really did… go beyond.

Selene was off all day. She didn't seem to be in the living world, and sat in the tower all day ignoring everything and everyone. When Kirsten came up later in the evening when clouds covered the sun, Selene had disappeared. Worried, she immediately stepped off the edge and made her way back towards the town. Leo and Helen joined her as she passed the town hall, and confirmed they had not seen her either.

'When was the last time she fed?' asked Helen suddenly. It was a vampire's most common and most essential question, especially for a vampire as young and as strong as Selene was, especially when Selene was in an off stage, where she became doubly unpredictable. There was a pause before they immediately broke off to search the place.

Selene felt like she was somehow made of stone and yet on fire at the same time. If she would probably have screamed out her rage and pain but she had forgotten what and who exactly she was, she had long stopped thinking coherently and was somewhere between wanting to find a Lyken and wanting to curl up into a ball and stay somewhere dark and quiet. She wandered about until suddenly a group of young men came upon her.

They were speaking, she realised, there was something so pathetic and weak and filthy about them, and when one man, a cocky-looking young man of no more than twenty, put a hand on her she snarled and backed away suddenly. They came after her, crowing in their rasping, dumb tongue and reaching out. It was very sudden, she simply thought they resembled Lykens and her brain switched off, and everything became…

'SELENE!' yelled Aasta, bolting down the alley. Selene was surrounded by bodies, she had pinned a heavy-looking man against the wall and was not so much feeding but feasting on him, and he struggled weakly against her. All of them had been killed horribly and if not fed from then simply had their spine snapped or head smashed or similar. Selene didn't respond until she wrenched her away from the dying man and tensed for a fight.

Selene stopped and appeared to just be a vacant shell of a person, nothing in her face or eyes suggested she was anything but asleep with her eyes open. It was a few moments before life flickered behind the blank blue irises and she focused on Aasta is surprise.

'What happened?' she asked, glancing around

'Take a look' said Aata, who walked down the alley towards them, arms our indicating the carnage. Selene looked at the bloody scene and her whole body seemed to flinch.

'I…'

'You hadn't fed in too long,' said Kirsten, jumping down behind her, 'and you were having another blank episode'

Selene simply stared. There wasn't words, and there was no point in saying anything at all.

'We will dispose of these, a town doesn't miss its drunkards for a couple of days, and we leave tonight, Selene, you go to the tower and stay there' snapped Kirsten, and Selene left.

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Selene was contemplating walking into the sunlight by the time Helen came.

'We have all done this,' she said, sitting down next to her on the ledge, 'my first time took place on a ship at sea, by the time we got to port there was only four crewmen left and all the passengers were dead, and they burned the ship because from all the crew could say they thought there was a disease of some kind… I had swum ashore and had fed on the people in a public house before I came back to myself'

Selene didn't nod or give any reaction at all, Helen was used to this.

'My feed was because I was so afraid of myself I was nearly insane by it, but yours was anger, what happened?'

Selene was silent for a long time, but Helen simply waited her out before Selene sighed and looked at her

'I'm not certain, 'she said quietly, 'it comes upon me so suddenly and I cannot even think…'

'You've done this before' said Helen, part question part statement

'Yes – Italy, Germany, Ireland…'

'You're less than a decade old, Selene' Helen stated, 'you're very strong, we do not know how strong yet because Viktor gave you so much of his own blood and no one knows how strong he is, even Markus is afraid of him, once you see Markus you'll understand how we see that, but dealing with the massacre you had in coming to us will take longer and more strength than you seem to realise before you are through the worst of it. You must subdue and contain your emotions, channel them into the war, or else it will consume you'

Selene nodded. Helen was odd, even for a vampire, but she cared about the struggles a growing vampire went through and many in the coven looked to her as a kind of leader-mother, mother figures were very rare in their world. This led to a kind of tension between her and Kirsten, who was a solid leader but seemed to expect the struggles to die out quicker than was realistic and considered it the fault of the vampire for letting it disrupt things.

'How old are you Helen?'

'I came to the coven through Amelia, about a century after the rebellion'

'You saw Kraven put the fortress alight?' asked Selene, who had had to sit through Kraven's telling of his finest hours, or rather years…

'I was there just after, Amelia's convoy, on its way to awaken Markus, found me, a vampire warrior had taken me as a ration in the middle of the war, my family were fed on by his men, and for some reason I changed instead of dying. Amelia sensed me, and her guards dragged me from our house, and after I returned from a year on my own at sea, I spent a long time as part of the court, but finally I trained to become a Death Dealer'

Selene understood why Helen seemed to be so unsurprised by any amount of carnage and able to forgive so much blood in a misjudged craving; she had got it all within a year of her own turning.

'But you are then much older than Kirsten' she said quizzically

'Kirsten was a favourite of Viktor's for two years before she was turned' said Helen, no more explanation was needed

'You do not resent it?' Selene asked, Helen's face, normally so passive, became sad around the eyes

'No, she does'

They waited until morning, and found the clouds allowed them to stay out. They did not speak any more, and finally when the others came to collect them, they left the tower and headed to the port, where they would eventually find a ship to go to Finland.


	3. The Crow Circles

The years passed easily, in fact, time felt like it was simply a chain of fights and spaces between fights, with intermittent bouts of control problems when she got too close to humans.

Selene was barely back from an assignment in Finland a week by the time Kraven found her. She was writing in her journal, recording patterns and ideas about the Lykens.

"Selene" said Kraven's voice outside her door

"Come in" she said, her new room was very similar to the one she had been introduced to as a newly bitten vampire. Now having passed the 20 year mark she was given a more permanent room. It still looked like she had only just moved in on the exception that there were a few books on top of the chest of drawers.

"I heard of your work in Finland" he began, sitting down on the sofa beside the window, and having made himself comfortable he stared at Selene. She now completely ignored the casual, indoor clothes and stayed in armour, leather and assorted weaponry. He began again "Viktor was most pleased"

That got a reaction, she looked up from her writing briefly but looked down again, as if annoyed it was him speaking

"I am pleased to serve him" she muttered

"Selene, may I ask you a question?" at which she finally looked at him "Did I offend you somehow? Ever since you came to us I have noticed you being cold"

"I focus on my work is all, it's why I'm here" she said impatiently. She had a feeling there was something she had missed and continued to write in hope she could figure it out before Kraven distracted her too much. The truth was he unsettled her, the way he seemed to assume she would… allow him, whatever he wanted it was just his to take.

"That's not what I meant," he said, rising and coming over, which made Selene look up and fix him with a fierce, searching gaze, she always seemed alarmed by his coming close to her, as if he had broken some kind of rule, "I know how you must hate me, for not saving your family"

"You weren't even there, you arrived after Viktor" she snapped

"And I was worried for you. The night I came and visited you, it was like I had offended you, and every time after when I tried to come near you or speak with you, it is the same, I only ask what I'd done?"

Selene softened at that. Her instincts warned her to stay on her guard, but she had known she was distant from everyone for a few years now – the aristocrats of the court knew to keep their curiosity at bay to save her thorny impatience with them. The Death Dealers knew her best, Viktor was the only one she really trusted, and Kraven was someone in between and her own suspicion of him was only founded on first impressions and people giving him vague but bad reports. She stared at him, wondering where exactly she had decided to avoid him, a potential friend…

"You were in the wrong place at the wrong time, I just never asked myself why" she said looking away

"Then perhaps I could ask for a truce" Kraven asked. Selene nodded in response

"You what?" demanded Aata

"I made a truce with him" said Selene, not looking up from sharpening her sword,

"Why?" asked Helen with a puzzled expression

"Why not? All I know of him is… rumours, nothing"

"We've told you who he is" said Aasta, who was plaiting her hair for training

"You told me he likes to be in control a lot and dips his finger in every pie, but when has he actually deserved our disgust?"

"Then," said Helen suddenly, stopping the others from protesting with a look, "I hope your truce goes well"

_Your_ truce; keep it away from us

"I won't…" she said

"You had better not" said Kirsten, polishing her armour and glaring at her, "he is to keep his distance like the rest of his kind"

Selene sighed and let that pass; Kirsten said things like that because she was annoyed Helen had said it all so well and so effectively, and had needed to reassert her authority. Helen's eyes met Selene's and they both looked away. It was embarrassing how obvious it was, how needless.

Selene was continuing her journal when Kraven dropped in again.

"I was hoping to have you at my side this evening" he announced, causing her to look up at him utterly puzzled

"Is this the Decade Ball?" she asked guardedly. She had been Viktor's escort in the last one and had put on the dress he requested, but sat the whole night wishing she could train. She also remembered Kraven staring at her a lot and giving jealous looks at Viktor, whom she suspected had enjoyed it. She wished she could have appreciated the joke even then.

"Yes" he answered, smiling. There something… expectant about him, like her answer was going to be yes, it was just a question of when…

"You know I would only do it for Viktor, I do not enjoy the court functions." she said, returning to her work

"Selene, please, I have never had an opportunity to speak with you and spend time with you, it is always one mission after another."

"And we can do so another time." she said flatly, daring him to press the issue

"Selene, please, for the sake of our truce?"

Selene felt that was too much manipulation, and fought on both sides of her own arguments; you never let anyone in, but Kraven has never earned such a favour from you…

"No." she said after about a second

Kraven stared angrily at her and strode out. Selene looked up just as he paused at the door and they had an awkward moment staring at each other.

"Another time, but not in court." said Selene, but Kraven simply pulled a grimace and left.

The next morning Selene was on her way to the Dining Hall, where pigs were being tied down and metal tubes stuck into their necks to feed the mansion's inhabitants. Selene had been given a cup from Viktor she used every day. It was pewter vampire-made affair, a friendship gift among thousands from Amelia's coven, who still lived in Russia. It had a glass bowl set in it for the actual vessel, but the pewter metal went up from a thin base and at the top of the stem it branched off into delicate, swirling tendrils that supported the glass evenly. Kraven met her in the queue and stared, like he normally did, but this time not at her but at her glass.

"It is beautiful" he said, plainly coveting it

"A gift from Viktor, it amused him to celebrate my twenty-first year since I was bitten"

Kraven looked surprised and suddenly looked embarrassed

"I had not realised, I would have given you a gift also" he said, looking earnestly into her face. Selene gave him an impatient expression but bit back a more rebuking retort

"To reach year after year is a human achievement, we're past such things – you are decades old yourself, do you celebrate a particular year?" she asked, trying to tone down the biting impatience

"I celebrate each century" he said, "you missed it"

"I was in Finland" she answered, realising where this was going

"Well, let's have us a celebration, for your twenty-first and my missed century-party"

Selene looked over at Helen, who was subtly watching and listening, now with a rather wicked smile on her face as she sipped. She saw Selene's 'save me' expression and looked down and away to engage in the Death Dealers' conversation.

"Kraven, I thank you, but please I do not wish to celebrate these things"

Kraven held out his glass to be filled and noticed he had got the last drops of the pig's blood, and his face twitched indignantly. Selene saw it; surely a war hero and such high-ranking vampire as he deserved the very first run of blood from a new pig? He did not say any more, but Selene sighed a little, he truly was a vain creature.

The design of Selene's glass kept the blood warm as she joined the Death Dealers

"It's like watching chalk and cheese trying to write on each other" said Aata, gloating slightly over his wooden beer mug; it was joke of his to use human objects such as this for such non-human things.

"It felt as such" said Selene bitterly

"Kraven is an aristocrat as much as he was a warrior in the days of Lucien, when he received his new position and privileges he never looked back," said Kirsten, wiping her mouth on a napkin, "he is no one's friend but his"

"I was the one who did him wrong," said Selene, "I… judged him too quickly, I think"

"And has that improved since your truce, giving him another chance?" asked Aata

"No" she admitted

"He boasts about you" said Aasta, surprising everyone, "my friend Heidi has heard him assure everyone he will have you at his side in public, and keep you there if he has any say about it"

Stunned, Selene stared at her

"He…?"

"Selene, you're his ultimate challenge," said Helen, seeing her confusion, "you are very beautiful and you only listen to Viktor, to him if he conquers you he... has something of Viktor's, you're a source of power, even if you don't acknowledge it, the Death Dealers have never been so strong, and Viktor's position has never been so great. If Kraven can get a piece of that…"

Selene was glaring at her, making Helen stop and give her a 'we tried to tell you' expression

"Why did no one tell me?" she demanded quietly

"You were determined" said Aasta simply

"Had you told me he was planning to trap me, I would have had more cause to listen, now as it happens he's planning celebrations for my twenty-first!"

"It's your twenty-first this year?" asked Kirsten, looking up from her cup

"Kirsten, don't" snapped Selene and drained her cup before it began to get too cold.

She decided to leave with the others to go training instead of doing some bow practice beforehand as she normally did. Kraven, in his usual manner, managed to trap her at the door.

"I have arranged it" he said, smiling, nearly gloating

"We have patrol tonight, I'm sorry" said Selene coolly

"I can call any patrol off" answered Kraven, his voice and eyes steely, Selene felt her old coldness towards him flare up again.

"Call it off," she hissed softly, "and it will go straight to Viktor. Believe when I say I know how to make my case with him." Kraven's eyes narrowed at her and she simply met his gaze and glared back "When we made this truce, I didn't think you would prove me right"

She flung his approaching hand to her arm away and strode down to the door beneath the stairs and gave Helen a grateful look as she held the door open. Kraven nearly made it to the door when Selene grabbed the handle and slammed it shut. They heard him put in the combination, and Helen exchanged smirks with Selene; they had changed the combination ten minutes ago.

Viktor was meditating. Perhaps that is too gentle a word, he was going through the memories he had ever received from Markus and Amelia – well, mostly Amelia.

Markus' memories were either about his younger days, playing with his brother as a child, laughing at his other brother who was forced to stay mortal…

Amelia had the most interesting; of the days picking up after the mess of Markus's reign, of doing what she must to keep the covens from falling apart. What was most interesting was that Amelia and Viktor had developed a way of speaking to each other through memories alone. The conversations had to happen with each century when a new Elder was awakened, Markus even acted as an unconscious messenger.

_Can you hear me?_

_Viktor?_

_Ah, just as I thought, it is simply another level of memory. I must ask you what does Markus have planned, he will not speak to me._

_It is hard to know what Markus knows, he keeps much of his thoughts away from memory transfer, and how can we trust him to be our Elder when he neither leads nor is of any help? He only shows us what he experiences of the covens, laden with distaste and lacking any detail! _

_He is of a position befitting his honour as the First; also, you would cut him loose? Allow him to help his brother? We would have had him controlled within years of being bitten had Markus been under more control… _

_Viktor, you killed your daughter? What is this of the lykens being free? There is infection everywhere! I have had to pick up Death Dealers from everywhere we can get them, just to keep things under some kind of control, what has happened? What did she do?_

_She betrayed us, Amelia, mixing with Lucien! We will never mention Sonja again._

Here Viktor then went through the memories of having the Elders together again once more, capturing William, he did not speak about anything until just before going into hibernation, Amelia gave him one last message as he drained her of blood for hibernation. Usually it was just drained out, but she had needed to speak with him.

_Viktor, the girl you picked up from the Prison-Maker's family should have been killed! If Markus were to find out who she is, we will descend to chaos again! Your heart has eased since her arrival, I am gratified to see, but she is not Sonja, you even gave her your blood! Viktor, what have you done?_

Viktor flinched every time he heard that particular message, she had been furious, like ice and fire driven into his mind in her acid rebuke aimed directly at the place he called 'point of reception', causing the impact of her words to be as deep and as strong as they could be. She was really very good at this…

He sighed. He loved Selene already, the night he had had her beside him, with Kraven burning for her in jealousy... her strength radiating beside him just like Sonja's had, her impatience with the courtiers and the pointless conversations, all of it... she was Sonja's exact twin in all but memories and honour. She had not had Sonja's upbringing, she adored Viktor for different reasons, but she was as close to Sonja as he could ever have dared dream of, having her look like her was enough, but now…

_I cannot part with her, Amelia. She is a credit to our race, a born leader of the Death Dealers, and her time for that will come! She will never be an Elder, but will at least be truly loyal, she is worth the risk. We must send her away during Markus's reign._

He thought about his answer, and decided this was the best, and stored it within him. Amelia would most likely read the relief Selene brought him in his memories, and before sending her away, would most likely investigate the new Sonja herself.

He sifted through the details of each reign. He then raised a hand, and a second later a cup filled with blood appeared in it. He drained it in one, grimacing at the rough, flat flavour and texture of pig's blood and, remembering he had only forty years left of his reign, decided he would go out again within the next decade.

"Selene, focus!" snapped Aasta, stepping back. Selene, panting slightly, narrowed her eyes and prepared herself. In eleven years Aasta had taught her much of her own fighting skills, but the closer she came to mastering what Aasta was so patiently trying to teach her it appeared to fall apart.

"I don't know what's happening" she said, calling a break. Aasta nodded, and sat on the table beside her

"It's just as you begin to truly focus, it falls apart – what goes through your mind?"

"I don't know" said Selene, but Aasta had an idea.

Taking a pair of small, wooden sparring sticks and whilst playing with them absently, asking Selene about her breathing and footwork until she suddenly lashed out and flipped herself away as Selene turned and began to fight back.

"No mercy" said Aasta, seeing the transformation in her friend, teeth bared from the pain, eyes ablaze, "this time, if you think I'm going to stop on any weakness you show, you will see how wrong you are!"

Selene's head and spine felt like a sick fire, it was a boiling, dark, somewhat sticky and disgusting feeling, like her skull and bones had turned into the wrong material, it was all wrong. The rage of the pain crept with a tingling sensation into her marrow.

Aata watched from the side, invisible in the shadows as part of an exercise. They had been training for about two days solid, with no sign of stopping. He knew his sister would have picked up on the same signals as he had; anguished looks, the expression they pull; she was still too human. It had come to needing some kind of incentive, fury appeared to be all they could go on.

Selene was certainly a better fighter whilst half-concussed. Her eroded, weakening grip on human levels of strength, control, ferocity, hunters' instinct was disabled when all she could do was defend herself (in the sense that the offence was the best defence) in any means she could get hold of, and here, as he could see, she was realising what she had available.

Wow, this is how you watch sport, he thought. There was about three or four hits landed per second on each side; twist, step, punch, grab, defend, spin, leap, bite, grab arm, body spin, defend, curl, flip… it flicked from one move to the next in milliseconds, very nearly a blur but a beautiful display of the inhumanely possible at full throttle, focused completely.

He then waited for the fury to calm down, and just as it normally did, it ended with Selene coming back to her senses. She had spun out of a defence move and, almost like waking up, her eyes changed back to brown.

"You have to leave them behind" said Aasta

"No" she answered, her brain on autopilot, sub-conscious speaking through the com

"You are more like the monsters that killed them than like a human, you are now no more human than Lykens are!"

"No!" shouted Selene, still not moving; she was past moving

"Humans are weak!" snapped Aasta, "They are nothing more than speaking animals, most not even living half a century, which means in their years you're already dead, you have no human in you to be one of them, you have no more connection to your family than I do!"

Selene didn't answer, her eyes had turned back to blue-white, and Aasta tensed for an attack but there was no more movement, not even breathing from Selene until she spoke

"I want… revenge" she said , making Aasta come out of her defensive pose and walk over. Standing eye-to-eye with Selene she answered

"Then it's yours to take from every Lyken you can find until they're all dead and the war you died for is over."

"I'm not dead." murmured Selene

"No, not any more" said Aasta, and punched Selene so hard she was flung backwards three feet into the wall behind her and she was out like a light.

"I had to get a few tips from Helen for that" she said to her brother, who leapt down to pick Selene up

"See, I was only ever afraid of your high-spin-left-punch, but that is…"

"Helen was totally right. She was clinging so hard onto what she had left of them and I had to take it from her." said Aasta, sitting down on the floor. Aata went and put Selene on the patient bed where serious injuries got treated by leaving them to it with a bell to signal for an unlimited supply of blood.

He came down and sat next to her, and put his arm around her.

"It's like when we woke up… only she doesn't have anyone now"

"We had each other, and she has us"

"We are already family; she also lived through the rampage and none of the bondage we got afterwards…"

The twins had been the sole survivors of an army of vampires desperate for blood, which had rampaged through their village and had eaten a good portion of everyone they had known before their eyes, until finally one saw them hiding and the craving had got too far to hold back…

"She has us" said Aata again


	4. In My Dying

When Selene woke she found herself on the patient bed for when you were more seriously wounded and needed a place to be still next to a source of fresh blood. There was a dumb waiter beside her and a bell-pull, but she simply stared at the wall.

She remembered the events leading up to her being knocked unconscious perfectly, and she was numbly aware of something she had been avoiding that had now completely taken hold of her.

It was cold and lifeless, a feeling that ran from the surface of her skin down into the bottom of her soul, and poured out through the other side. It was a huge, disastrous feeling; she had been flung down a precipice, flying down at a terrifying speed, if only she could feel afraid, but all feeling had long since been sucked out and replaced by this void she was currently falling into. There was no time, no sense of space (fir it was far too large for that) and beyond comprehension. Try as an author might, this feeling, this paralyzing, structure-less, formless feeling in its truest form is simply called loss. Complete realisation of something gone and irretrievable, both soul and mind recognise its disappearance, and in times like Selene's current state, it utterly destroys the fragile structure you built to avoid confronting it, fearing its terrible strength, and then one has absolutely nothing but the abject misery that is the blood flowing from the wound that is loss.

It was weeks of Selene lying there, unresponsive, before Kirsten, who had had to bitterly recognise that they had to get Selene back. Coaxing had done nothing, they had all taken to sleeping down there with her, which had helped for she now acknowledged their presence, but nothing more.

'She's dead' said Phoebe, who had returned with Ladarius, Leo and Pedro earlier that day, having seen Selene before this they were shocked at the change

'She feels she ought to have died, or what she thought she was has died?' asked Aasta, who had discussed this with Helen and Kirsten and had drawn no conclusion

'Probably both, I bet she really believed she was more human than vampire until she couldn't keep doing it any more'

'We all went through that' snapped Kirsten

'Yes,' said Aasta, giving Phoebe a 'don't rise to it' look, 'but, when we were all bitten we all did the normal thing did we not? We would not believe it for months, even perhaps a couple of years until the mind changes itself to suit our ways… we all said how Selene took it too well, even if she had to drink blood to become a vampire, I think she somehow – kept it away, and when she could believe she was human any longer it was too sudden for her to cope'

Helen smiled broadly and nodded at Aasta. She was a good pupil of the mind, she could not have put it better herself, and tapped the table to express her agreement. This was followed by the silent Pedro, Ladarius and Phoebe.

'We must decide how to resolve it' said Kirsten impatiently, earning a couple of annoyed looks her way

'Kirsten's right' said Ladarius, 'Her strength is now as much a part of our pattern as any of us are; we now do more excursions, braver tasks, harder kills, because with her strength on our side we are stronger as a whole. As a Death Dealer she owes allegiance to us, it is her duty to fight with us'

There was a thoughtful pause.

'I suggest we should take time to think on it' said Helen, earning, as usual, a glare from Kirsten simply for speaking, but Helen was well used to it by now and added she would stay with Selene for the night. Vampires only needed one night's sleep every four to six days, and she had deliberately missed last week's rest to ensure she would sleep well tonight.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

'I have not seen Selene' said Viktor, sipping his goblet. Kraven looked up from staring into the fire and sighed

'Kirsten's men have been the only ones to see her for four months, my lord, they do not say what is ill with her'

'What do they say?'

'That she is not ill but she chooses to be alone, my lord' he said, somewhat bitterly. He had hoped to pressure her into the gathering he had organised, and his postponing it had embarrassed him

Ah, not so strong then…

'We let her recover, Kraven, I recall your transition being… less than flattering' he said silkily, watching with amusement at Kraven's sudden, hot embarrassment. His vanity was truly too much of an open target to resist…

He sipped his goblet again and winced in disgust. Kraven noticed, and stared at the fire

'My lord, there is a village a day's ride from here, suffering a plague…'

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Selene woke. She couldn't remember her dream, but something began to change in her that she had noticed in the very deepest abscesses in her empty soul.

She studied it, mostly by focusing on the most painful thoughts that had engulfed her with agony for what felt like forever, and noticed her reactions had changed; the pain was less sharp, the flow of it more of a trickle, and was altogether subdued. Stranger still, the faces of her family were becoming blurred and faint, their voices echoing indistinctly in some deep part of the precipice that she had somehow risen out of.

She turned away from the wall and found Ladarius reading.

'How long?' she asked, finding her voice had reduced to a murmur from lack of use. Ladarius, however, jumped at her speaking and slammed his book shut. Coming over to her he knelt beside the bed and studied her face for a moment.

'You're back then' he said with relief, and then remembered her question 'nearly nine months'

Selene sat up. Wincing as her muscles began to regenerate from movement she stared at her hands. Someone had been filing her nails, somewhere dimly in her memory she recalled people feeding her, walking her around the room, talking to her.

She simply said nothing. Ladarius saw it in her face, it was all over. Her empty expression and puppet-like responses were finally over, they didn't have to limp along without her any more. With a suddenly burst of new relief and happiness he hugged Selene to him and felt her respond, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and back.

'So long…' she murmured

Ladarius came back out of the hug, his dark features practically shining with joy, and helped her off the bed.

'I must go find the others, here,' he added, pulling the bell-pull, 'you haven't fed in a while, you haven't fed properly since Aasta knocked you out, use the time for that'

Selene had drunk the blood of three pigs when the Death Dealers finally returned. Helen was first in who practically ran over and hugged her tightly.

'You have no idea what a struggle is has been' she said, taking both of Selene's hands

'I'm…'

'Selene!' cried out Kirsten, in her usual curt form, and nodded in satisfaction at the cup 'good, if you have done with floating near death we can get you back into hunting, can we?'

'Yes' said Selene, almost automatically, Kirsten nodded again and went over to the wardrobe to find her indoor clothes for between hunts.

The twins, Pedro and Ladarius came in shortly after. Selene looked at them and noticed Leo and Phoebe were missing. Aasta immediately saw Selene's questioning expression and came over to explain.

'There was an accident in Spain,' she explained gently, 'Lykens kidnapped Phoebe and in the rescue mission Leo was hit by a villagers' flaming arrow'

'And Phoebe?'

'That's something we have a problem with' said Kirsten, interrupting, 'they killed Phoebe,' she said just to quieten Selene's questions, 'before we killed them all we captured their leader, we think he was a physician before they turned him, he was experimenting with… bites, with turning and all… those things' she finished, distaste like acid dripping off each word

Aasta looked Selene in the eye and finished softly

'He was using Phoebe to experiment with bites from both species… he tortured her so she had to feed to recover… Leo was there for her before she died'

Selene was frozen, she had felt fury before, but on the blank canvas that was now her soul it seemed to stain the fabric… it felt like someone had breathed a sun into her, a burning ball of fury casting everything into the clearest of light.

'You can imagine Leo's fury,' continued Aasta, 'he slaughtered everything in sight, and by the time the villagers came to see what was happening all they could see was the regressed bodies of men and women missing from their village and Leo with a sword…'

'Such is this life we chose' said Kirsten

'Just hold your foul tongue, Kirsten!' snarled Selene, and to everyone's intense surprise she did. She glowered at Selene for speaking to her that way but at least was above attacking a Death Dealer who had recovered from an internal coma just a few hours previously.

'The Lyken died from over-exposure to silver once we had finished with him' said Aata, sitting on the table opposite her, 'none of the humans bitten by both species survived… we found he discovered a way to stop Lykens transforming, to or from their forms, but…'

The end of the sentence hung in the air "it wasn't worth two of us dying for"

'Tomorrow night we'll go out' said Kirsten

'I think we should take in a few for questioning' said Selene, earning a glare from their leader

'The chances of Lykens even making contact from that far apart is so small, Selene, it is not even worth it!'

Selene began to protest before Kirsten held up her hand for silence, pulling rank on her.

'We use tonight to mourn, and to train again with Selene, tomorrow night we move out'

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

That night they split up into partners, but Selene went as a three with Helen and Pedro. They rode to Cornwall, and would meet back at the mansion in five days.

Selene didn't speak the entire journey there, it wasn't until they settled in a disused barn by a river that she finally spoke her mind.

'I think Kirsten is being ignorant' she said, when Helen asked her what was wrong

'No change there.' she replied, half amused half quizzical

'No, the Lykens are daring to kidnap and abuse our kind, I was told they fear us more than they fear silver, but now its over, if they kidnap a Death Dealer that means Lykens are finding ways to fight back. They will have talked about it, planned it, finally some Lyken with more daring than the rest begins it, this is not the end of it'

Helen and Pedro nodded, it made sense

'Kirsten is afraid, Selene' said Helen, leaping onto a beam and settling down onto it, 'she knows that if it came to a question of judgement that goes beyond "to kill or not to kill" we are not going to follow her, that was put into light when you became ill, Aasta was given two orders, by me and by Kirsten, and she followed mine, and as a result we did not lose Leo into the bargain. She told me later she listened to my order and heard your voice in it also, Kirsten's reign is over, and I think she knows it'

'She is already asking of me to help her' said Pedro is his lilting Spanish accent, in a flash Selene realised she could remember him reading to her as she was ill, 'she knows if she has my support than Leo will follow, and that's too great a number and the others will stay together'

Selene nodded and asked 'So what did you say?'

'I told her nothing had changed, she was still our leader, you were ill, and Helen will not do anything to tear us apart'

'And she bought that?' asked Helen incredulously

'Well, I spoke of the present moment where she asked me, she could sense I was speaking truth' he said, smiling crookedly

'Her short-sightedness is why we lost two of our best!' snarled Helen so suddenly and loudly both her companions jumped

'It was an accident' said Selene, clearly asking her the unsaid question… wasn't it?

'She knew there were more Lykens than we had first believed, they behaved like it, like you wrote in your journal, I don't know if you noticed we took it,' Selene was about to shake her head when Helen suddenly slid down off the beam and was already pacing before she hit the ground, 'they were spreading out, grouping up and dissipating into random patterns, just like large groups do when they're hiding their numbers, she knew! She'd read it from your journal and said she knew from experience, we found this in her bag. She still thought she could send Leo and Phoebe in there to thin them out and weaken the ranks, and then acted as if Phoebe's capture was her own fault! Phoebe, you've seen her in the field, she had eyes in the back of her head; it would take more than anyone could deal with just to be caught out!'

Helen stopped pacing and seemed to gain better control of herself

'And so I know, we all know what you're thinking, and I know where we can take them when we return home'

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

They captured three Lykens two days later. When the third finally died, Selene and her comrades knew three things; it was whispered among the Lykens that a bite from both species might create something else, something new, but no one had ever survived it, and all died within hours if not minutes of the second bite. There were travelling bands of Lykens, who found out lone wolves and created new Lykens, but it was impossible to tell when and where they were about to go.

The third thing was more and more Lykens were learning to transform at any time, not just when the moon was full and when they were most furious; they were learning how to channel their anger, use their strengths with control, into lethal force.

The next night, before they had to leave, they tracked a lone Lyken to a farm near the border of Belgium and Selene suspected he was simply a stray turned man who thought he was going insane. She burst the door open of the barn he was hiding in and shot an arrow through his neck, and remounted with a nod to her companions.

'I believe we should have checked, just to be sure' commented Pedro as they passed a village

Selene looked him in the eye with a barest hint of a smile lightening her face

'I was certain' she said, and they rode on to Paris without another word.

Helen had seen the look in Selene's face as she had walked back from the barn on many Death Dealer's faces before, most memorably on Aasta's and Kirsten's – they had done a border-line task, somewhere along the line of necessary and unnecessary coldness in doing their job, choosing a newly bitten Lykan with complete confusion and remorse over what they had done since the full moon (a famous area of uncertainty in Death Dealers) to be cold, precise and to all appearances unconcerned with the human factor of the job. There were tells, and Helen was well-versed. Selene, in her dying humanity, had shot a crossbow bolt through a weeping man's neck if only to prove to herself that all she had been before she was bitten (twenty-odd years ago now, how time flies…) was dying or close to death.

Now came the other question; would Selene become like Aasta, who was only cold internally towards herself in parts but entirely towards Lykens, or like Kirsten, who was cold to everyone and everything except herself, which she constantly tried to raise above everyone else as a form of survival.


	5. Within the Fortress and Out

Thanks for your support readers, just to warn you there may well be large time gaps between each chapter; my internet does cut out for days at a time. I'd love to hear more about what you think of it all so far. Warning note; I will touch on things like Twilight and stuff like that (even movies), so if I get something a bit wrong it's just artistic licence – if I get something really wrong tell me, and as ever, I don't own any of the characters mentioned.

By the way,_ geþafsumnes_ is an Old English word, meaning agreement, pronounced Geh-thaf-ssum-nez. I used it because this is the era between the transition of the Old English language to Middle English.

Móirne = Morn-yeh

Sléibhín = Shlay-veen

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Selene had decided to reread her journals. It was going to take a week or more to do, there was seventy years worth of Lyken tracking, observing, extracting and killing and she had been wanting to read them, except there had always been something; new kinds of training, going to decade balls as Viktor's escort (Aasta had taken pity on her and proceeded to accompany her), dealing with Kirsten's rage when she found out about torturing Lykens for information, consequently going on a few more slightly pointless excursions supposedly as punishment (which Selene did not point out was not much of a punishment but was an interesting insight into how their leader viewed such tasks), and the list went on.

In fifty years Selene had settled. She worked at becoming a better soldier, setting up a group of contacts everywhere from Anowarkowa (_later renamed America_ (the locals had only agreed to keep contact provided they didn't settle or even come back too often, claiming they had enough 'cold ones' to deal with already)), Ireland, Europe and even the strange lands far to the East that vampires, bored with their own countries, had discovered and settled on, and word slowly trickled back about it.

As she read, it amused Selene to see how her handwriting had changed.

"Of the moste grimm matters in Lyken breede, becoming of one frome the human state only few hours taketh, the silver weapone a few hours or to one day delayeth, upon full moone therein lies no wille to resist change.

Of both breeds, vampyre & Lykenn, no patterne yet emerge upon whome changeth and who dieth upon bite, in personalle biting, no victim yet liveth, vampyre bite appear less likelie to change human state, Lyken still have manie die upon bite, yet manie more changeth. Cannot be certaine if moone phase changeth death rate."

Selene smiled a little at the expectant tone of her own writing, like within a decade all her questions would be solved, like this little leather-bound volume would be all she would write. There were many more larger books she had written and still filled with many points, questions, qualms and mysteries.

There was a knock breaking her concentration, and only one person ever knocked.

'I was wondering if you would accompany me to…'

'I can't' she said automatically, causing Kraven to sigh.

'It is Amelia's awakening, it is traditional for everyone to be there'

'I'm going with the Death Dealers, if we are representing the coven then I will do it with them' said Selene coolly, continuing to read

Kraven appeared to have something rather pressing on his mind, he was pacing around as he spoke.

'I am the official leader of the Death Dealers,' he said, causing her to look up, 'Kirsten was my choosing to continue patrols and training, she answers to me, and I will stand with the Death Dealers on the Awakening, and you will stand beside me, it that at all unclear?'

Selene felt the intensity of the atmostphere rocket; every vampire in the rooms immediate vicinity would have heard everything and they were waiting for Selene to finally, after a near century of resisting, to give in. He had obviously been desperate to prove he could do it.

'One condition and I will allow you the one night,' she said

'Name it' he said, eyes hard and keen

'Give up your position as the Leader and give it to Kirsten, all of it, and I will stay by your side until the Awakening is over'

There was a massive chorus of soft gasping, murmuring and whispering, but Selene and Kraven stood in complete silence, staring each other down.

'I will require more than one night' said Kraven

'How many?' she breathed

'More than one' he said smiling slightly, an oily, triumphant expression

'Done' she said, before he could add more terms, but Kraven wasn't finished

'If I call for your presence, you will come'

'A Death Dealer's alliegence is to the protection of the coven' hissed Selene, quoting part of the written pledge by a comrade of Kraven's before they had gone to extinguish the Lyken rebellion.

_A Deathe-Dealler hath no self wille, no face, no sex, no life of which to calle theire owne. Nonne of oure go forth alone, oure sworde oure right manne beith, our shield oure left, oure dutie to the noblle Race lyeth, oure alliegence is to the protectionne of thee Coven, oure wille be that of the Reignning Elder. On we march, with oure sworde and shield, front and back flanking, to victorie from blood wroughteth, or final Peace findeth. _

The vampire who had made this pledge had, rumour had it, been Kraven's closest friend, and had made it with him right to the heart of the Rebellion, but had finally died just before Kraven could reach Lucian.

Kraven flinched slightly as if tasting something bitter. It was the ancient law of the Covens, the Death Dealers' highest duty was protecting the Coven, and those of the Coven could not overrule it unless they appealed to the Reigning Elder, who was unlikely to hear the plea with a sympathetic ear.

As Death Dealers, Selene and the group resented Kraven, for bringing the court and the war so close together, being the technical leader but appointing a Right-Wing Man such as Kirsten to do his job while he claimed special rights and privileges as the war hero and leader from legend.

'You will obey me when I call you, it will be your highest priority below your duties to be at my side, and you will do as I tell you – is it completely clear?'

I could actually kill him, thought Selene, he has not fought for centuries and I am stronger, faster and better trained… but…

'Done' she said, biting back the fury and the lust for his death

Kraven finally smiled, it was a slow, awful affair shining and dripping with oily pride and lust, of possession and conquest. Selene watched him as he instructed her what dress she was to wear that evening, that she was to sit beside him and so on, she mentally withdrew and simply watched the resentfulness in his eyes as he tried to be a picture of effortless victory, but she knew two things; he couldn't force her to do anything she truly would not do, and she had neatly cut his ace card out his hand, she had cut off the hand that held it and the arm that gripped the Death Dealers too near the aristocratic life had had its tendons cut.

When he left to lick his wounds she allowed no smile to cross her face. She simply put on her leather long coat and went to speak to Viktor for the last time before he would prepare to sleep for two centuries.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Viktor had had Tanis, whose hearing was so good it equaled Markus's, to tell him everything that happened.

He immediately knew what Selene would do, and smiled openly in pure joy for the fierce strength, pride and obedience of her, coupled with her obvious maliciousness at what she was about to do.

'Send her in' he commanded, having heard her approach up the stairs.

Selene gave him the same look every time she saw him, and within his ancient soul it lit a small light, a breath-taking beautiful relief from the mundane, the dark and ancient dryness of being immortal. It was a look a daughter gave her adored father, a soldier to her revered protector and leader.

She knelt in her formal greeting and he smiled as she approached closer.

'I know what it is you came for, Selene' he said warmly. Selene very nearly objected but waited for her permission to speak.

'Come closer, child, let us speak together' he said, stretching his hand out and feeling it instantly taken hold of by both of Selene's, who in vampire speed had rushed forward to receive his welcome.

'I came to speak to you before you…' she began but hesitated before finishing 'slumber'

'Yes, it is hard for any of our children to live without their Sire, Amelia's coven will be overjoyed to have her Awakened'

That was of little comfort to Selene he could see and he smiled again as she laid her head on their hands as she had now taken a kneeling position beside his throne. He squeezed her hand and she looked up

'Let us address the other matter'

'Kraven and I made a geþafsumnes' she began formally, but staying as she was instead of standing before him.

'And where then is the partner of this agreement?' asked Viktor in formal tones

'He… is attending duties' said Selene, a mischievous expression just about colouring her eyes

'Then, my child, what was the geþafsumnes to address?' he asked, nearly smiling – Kraven would be very busy at the moment trying to explain away what Selene had taken from him, a heavy duty indeed

'He would have me take time from my duties, to make him my second priority just below the Death Dealer's Pledge, in exchange for his relinquishing the role as Leader, to be given entirely and without condition or restraint to the Right-Wing Man'

Oh dear, thought Viktor with amusement, at least the pain is mutual for both.

'And why then do you need my consent?' he asked, again for formal values, as Tanis was writing all this down

'So it is written and cannot be reversed,' answered Selene, 'so it has the blessing of an Elder who may decide whether such a geþafsumnes may benefit or not unbalance the Coven, so in your wisdom we may do the right thing for our Race'

Oh, but you unbalance everything you touch, thought Viktor, you do not know it but a Ruling was broken for you, the Coven changed forever because of you, the future of the Death Dealers forever altered, Kraven changed and finally put in place forever as he has never been put in a Geþafsumnes before, and would never have allowed it lest it prevent him from something! You have changed my internal happiness forever.

'I Bless this geþafsumnes, no other than an Elder may undo it, you will have a secondary duty, he will have none as a Death Dealer and will henceforth be a Court Member and will have nothing to influence or ascertain from the Death Dealers, the Right-Wing Man will take his place as Leader. You will balance your duties as you see fit' he added, quite spontaneously, not liking the thought of Selene being obedient to anyone but himself. Selene, seeing it as an act of mercy, gave him a look of such open adoration and gratefulness Viktor nearly gathered her into his arms as he would have done another girl who, very early on, had given him the exact same look…

'It please me to know you are happy will I slumber' he said in conversational tones again, and gave her the nod, their personal signal for her to leave. Selene kissed his knuckle and tilted her face to have Viktor stroke her hair, which as it had been growing for seventy years unchecked except by an occasionally, clean cut with a sword, was getting very long. Selene sighed and left.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Selene did not appear in a dress but decided to the leather long coat and no armour or weapons. Kraven had been furious, not just because she had simply not replied when he had asked 'what is this?' at her attire, but he had heard about Viktor's ruling.

Kirsten, however, and the other Death Dealers, had been overjoyed. Aasta had even hugged Selene upon her entry to the Basement to relinquish her weapons for the night.

'Whatever you do, don't leave me with him' said Selene to them all

'So much for your truce' laughed Ladarius, very nearly making Selene smile, but she was too annoyed about her lack of weapons to be in too much good humour.

'Listen, take these,' said Kirsten, handing her a strange set of cloth and felt straps and sheaths, to Selene's shock she realised they were Kirsten's famous sleeve-knives. Tiny, handle-less knives about the length of the a finger, designed to cut deep and open as much flesh to the air as possible, and due to their design managed to get through medium-thickness leather. They were invisible to all but the wearer and had enough weight to make the holes in Selene's attire feel slightly less empty.

'You have changed our history, I have not managed the same in all my life' she said gracefully

It's because I let you stay leader, and freed you from Kraven, thought Selene, smiling back and taking the package with due respect and care.

'You will not wear a dress?' asked Pedro curiously, seeing Selene put them straight on under her black cloth sleeves.

'Not with Kraven, no' said Selene, and had after putting on her long leather coat she met Kraven in the Great Hall as agreed. Kraven did have long to cudgel her or boast to his friends of his new official category.

The Court of Amelia arrived just as Two of the Clock struck in the clocks around the house. They spoke together quietly in Russian. Selene, who only knew a little, managed to get a word or two but nothing of any sense. She slipped from Kraven's side and joined the Death Dealers beside Viktor, and with a slightly smug feeling, ignored Kraven's burning glares and subtle gestures.

Selene watched the precession. It was certainly designed to be subtly impressive, everyone was wearing the best, first came the highest ranking vampires of the coven, three black men she suspected were brothers, a Chinese woman and albino twins. Selene had heard of them, apparently they had special gifts, one telepathic and once telekinetic, which was incredibly rare and it was suspected that it was because of their unusual genetics. They all wore clothing that depicted their rank, their bearing and their features to their advantage. The black brothers wore dark shirts with red leather jerkins, and dark trousers. The twins wore light colours, which the women of the court sighed with envy, such unusual colouring of long robes, the woman wearing purple robes with blue swirling patterns and red trimming, the man wearing dark blue with red, simple patterns and black trimming, the Chinese woman wearing bright red shirt, overcoat and trousers with every colour of trimming, pattern and dye. It was a good entry for the envoy. Next came the other vampires in what Selene assumed was a descending the ranks order. Until the Death Dealers, in the uniform black or brown leather, cloaks or various furs, cloths and leathers and heavy boots which Selene liked and hoped she might trade for.

'You are most welcome to this land and this house, Court of Amelia' said Viktor, standing and opening his arms, in full traditional garb. He had a long kilt, bare chest and long jacket inlaid with silver threads and patterns of delicate metals. Kraven plainly coveted it, wearing his black trousers and shirt with brown leather jerkin. Selene found it interesting human fashion worked so hard to hide most of the human form when vampire fashions worked to delicately enhance and show it off.

The dead do not need modesty, she thought musingly to herself. She noticed the woman albino twin suddenly look sideways at her and give her the smallest of smiles in her eyes. It was an oddly familiar expression, like they had met before. Selene gave her a tiny acknowledging nod, and at the same time saw another blonde woman, just behind the highest ranks, staring at her. It was a shocked, almost stunned expression, plainly asking; what on earth are you doing here?

Selene made eye contact with her with her long enough to give a quizzical expression and looked away. The blonde vampire simply kept staring which now made her the second person to be staring at Selene.

'Today just isn't my day' she muttered to Aasta, who then found the blonde vampire and Kraven staring at her friend and smiled pityingly at her friend

'The minute we are permitted we will make an escape'

'I can't' muttered Selene in despair, 'all duties are cancelled today, I have a secondary duty to Kraven'

'Et est ainsi le prix de la liberté' muttered Ladarius on Selene's other side, causing most of the Death Dealers to smile, Selene noticed the albino woman smiled also, and her gaze flickered to them and away back to the conversation of formal greetings again.

You must be bored to be listening to common Death Dealers' conversation, she thought unintentionally, the woman looked back at her and suddenly a presence entered her mind

You have no idea

You can hear me??

Yes, do continue

Selene realised she had given Ladarius the alert signal and looked at him, and gave the smallest of indications to the albino woman. Ladarius smiled and looked at the woman, who looked at him back and from the look of it a greeting conversation took place

You freed the Death Dealers from Kraven? I had wondered what this great new development was.

Selene realised the woman was speaking to a specific area in her mind, and withdrew from it, which made the woman give her a blank look a look away again.

'Don't do that, it pisses her off' muttered Helen from behind

'It's my mind, Helen'

'She's only curious'

Selene allowed her thoughts to occupy the front of her mind again and silently apologised

It is of no matter, Selene

You have me at an advantage

I am Móirne, my brother is Sléibhín

I am honoured

As are we

The conversation ended. The presence simply withdrew, and Selene could think more freely again. It was the most bizarre feeling she had ever had, the ultimate intrusion to one's personal space, yet oddly non-offensive and functional.

That night Selene was forced to sit next to Kraven at dinner and beside him as he spoke to old friends. It was an interesting enough night meeting so many vampires from all over the world. The Chinese woman was mostly known as the New World Vampire, but had been bitten by a vampire before the first Western vampires had travelled her way, and her eyes were clear red instead of blue, including one or two from Anowarkowa who spoke of a coven in Italy who also had their eyes and much more in terms of abilities, everything from telepathy, pain affliction, sensing of the impossible things such as personal bonds, temperament, mood, and so on. Selene could tell by the way they spoke that these people were best avoided.

'Well, Selene and I started with a truce at first, did we not?' said Kraven's voice and Selene emerged from her focus on another conversation

'I beg your pardon?' she asked in a voice of cold steel

'We had a truce at first did we not?' he asked in a firm voice

'I believe the truce came before our agreement, yes' she said, realising exactly what he was doing and was not keen to go in that direction. Kraven noticed Selene's tone and icy demeanor had seriously detracted from his implied meaning and immediately began to speak more of how Death Dealers made bad social contacts. Seeing her chance to act offended or at least impatient, Selene shot him a death-ray glance and nodded respectfully to the vampires around her and strode off to join the other Death Dealers in the corner of the room exchanging notes with the Death Dealers from Amelia's envoy.

On the way there, she noticed the blonde vampire staring at her again, and casually made her way to the solid silver 'punchbowl', which contained a pleasant mix of matured wine and blood.

'I thought we might as well introduce ourselves' she said to the vampire who had, perhaps unconsciously, edged closer. The vampire looked shocked at such a blunt address and smiled self-consciously

'I am Louca' she said in a clear, almost silvery English accent. She had been high-born before she was bitten

'I am Selene' she answered, noting her voice had subtle hints of farm-girl tones. Good.

'I do apologise, I suppose you have had the same reaction many times' said Louca, helping herself to punch

'Only once or twice, I cannot think whom I resemble' said Selene sipping her punch from her personal vessel

Louca gave her an odd sideways look and continued spooning punch

'You knew her then?' said Selene, seeing the look vampires often got when they remembered something poignant from their long, complicated past (which was a lot)

'Yes' she said softly, and seeing Selene's expression she added 'She was a noble, she was punished for an affair' the tone suggested clearly two things; how close they had been and how she was punished

'She knew of our race and had to be silenced,' said Selene summarising, 'I have heard of things like it'

Louca smiled, it was a sad, mysterious smile but the whole time she had barely taken her eyes off Selene. Selene felt sorry for her, it must be hard to see someone you had loved so well so long after they had died. A common question was 'Seen a ghost?' when one recognized a face in the millions of mortals. Selene had few contacts in the human world and was careful not to focus too hard on any of them, there were five faces she had engraved in her own memory and was determined they would remain there and on no one's body.

'She must have been a good friend, you clearly miss her' said Selene, a little awkward for what to say. Louca appeared to appreciate that and nodded. It was also common for a vampire to never mention the name or memory of those they remembered.

'She couldn't speak to many openly, and even fewer about anything she cared about' she explained, causing Selene to stir with true sympathy. That was Aasta all over, and Selene couldn't imagine losing her.

'I hope we will become friends' said Selene, and Louca saw it as the end of the conversation, and smiled before moving on to speak to someone else. Upon seeing Kraven, Louca touched Selene on the elbow in warning and stepped casually in front of her to shield her from view. Selene was grateful but couldn't say so as she moved the rest of the way to the Death Dealers, feeling oddly hollow. To be looked at like that, it was a deep, affectionate look, like Viktor would look at her, but it was sad. To cause someone so much pain without being able to help made Selene feel hollow. She shook the feeling away and resolved to avoid Louca.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

When Amelia first became conscious she first remembered what she had last said to Viktor, as part of an echo from the blood she had transferred to him recognising its true body

_Viktor, the girl you picked up from the Prison-Maker's family should have been killed! If Markus were to find out who she is, we will descend to chaos again! Your heart has eased since her arrival, I am gratified to see, but she is not Sonja, you even gave her your blood! Viktor, what have you done?_

_I cannot part with her, Amelia. She is a credit to our race, a born leader of the Death Dealers, and her time for that will come! She will never be an Elder, but will at least be truly loyal, she is worth the risk. We must send her away during Markus's reign. _

Well yes, she thought angrily to herself. The reason we killed them was because of Markus; the Lyken would have set William free and Markus would have protected him until there was no humanity left and they would fight until all life was destroyed. That is was hung on Selene's ignorant shoulders, the risk of her being alive was that Markus would realise how she came to the coven in the first place, now that Lucian thought the entire family was dead they at least had one less thing to worry about…

Still, she had not even seen the girl. Viktor's soul had eased since her arrival, Viktor's memories which now flowed through her mind into her own memories showed little of her as a true testament to an Elder's skill over their memories, hiding her from Markus for when he was awakened. Now it was up to Amelia to do the same for Viktor's sake. She could not help but wonder how this farm girl could possibly have reminded Viktor of his daughter, perhaps it was her eyes, or something in her manner… She drank hungrily from a man, specially brought in for her awakening and mused on Viktor's reign.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

As a Death Dealer, Selene and the others were all first in meeting Amelia. It had been two days, ample time for her to regain human form and sufficiently gather her thoughts together.

The Death Dealers from Russia spoke excitedly together about their leader, which, Selene gathered, was still Amelia, and their Right-Wing Man was actually called Left-Wing Man, or The Shield as Kirsten would be The Sword, all in connection the Written Pledge. They even called their second-in-command 'Ekran' as their word for both shield.

'What do we call her?' asked Helen to Yulia, the Ekran

'We call her "Rukovodityai"' answered the Ekran, 'but you call her My Lady'

Almost on cue, they were called in.

Selene came in behind Helen, and stood in a standard formation of Wing Men in front and the group behind in ranks of three. Selene realised the New World Vampire was there, dressed in leather and an odd kind of armour, and the male albino. She could imagine telekinesis being very handy in battle, she wondered what the Chinese woman could do but returned her gaze to Amelia.

She was certainly extremely beautiful. Everything from her clothing to her aura spoke of grace and power, her eyes white-blue (which Selene guessed came from feeding recently as she would have to every hour) and her seating on a simple chair instead of a throne.

She rose, to which the ranks bowed and the Wing Men knelt. Amelia smiled and came down to them. To Yulia she spoke quietly in Russian, and then to Kirsten she spoke loudly enough to be heard.

'I see new faces, it is a good sign – I am sorry for Phoebe and Leo, I was fond of them both'

Selene wanted Kirsten to show some sign of weakness, a hesitation, a flicker of panic, guilt or anger, but nothing happened. She simply nodded and responded how she was also, and missed their presence. Helen bristled; her hands clenched and her jaw tightened. Selene moved very slightly to catch her attention, a signal to calm down. Helen smiled very slightly in response and relaxed just in time for Amelia to turn her attention to them.

Amelia nodded to Helen, they were old friends. She also nodded to the twins, whose dark skins and Arabic features complemented her Irish twins perfectly and she had always appreciated that. She Ladarius and Pedro introduce themselves and asked about their experience. She then came to Sonja and stopped.

There was a small pause before she saw subtle differences in Sonja that made her not Sonja but an almost exact replica with a different soul.

'And who are you?' she asked pleasantly

Selene looked at Amelia, having wondered why on earth she had given her such an intense look, like Louca's expression but ten-fold, partly because an Elder was so old their experience in everything was infinite, and she had_ paused_ in clear _shock_. Her heart rate went up as she became uncharacteristically nervous and answered 'I am Selene'

'You will be Viktor's newest, then' said Amelia, covering her stunned silence

'I am, honoured' Selene stammered slightly, wondering what on earth was going on

We do not mention Sonja, ever, thought Amelia, and thought, poor Louca! What a shock she must have had!

'And how long have you been with us?'

'Seventy-six years, I believe, perhaps a year or two either way' answered the nervous Selene. She noticed Amelia still had a disbelieving look in her eyes, a stunned expression just behind her features, a keen interest directed straight at her.

'You came to us through a Lyken attack did you not?' she said, remembering what Viktor had told her in his memories. It had been a truly vicious attack of his, he was lucky Selene had not seen more.

'Yes' answered Selene, her face suddenly clouded by memory

'I am glad to see your contribution to us' Said Amelia, and stepped back to her chair. She dismissed the Death Dealers and sent for Louca, who came in looking just as shocked as she felt.

'My Lady' she said, kneeling

'Come, we have no need for that' said Amelia rising. Louca strode over and hugged the woman she considered a sister and mother tightly.

'I have seen her; I can imagine your pain' said Amelia somewhat numbly yet sympathetically

'I truly thought it was her, it is the living image of her!' cried Louca, taking her hands

'Yes, I found myself staring,' said Amelia smiling bemusedly, 'for a moment I thought Sonja had somehow fooled Viktor, that she was somehow back'

'And Viktor's been treating her like a daughter! You could see it; could you smell his blood in her veins?'

'I could, it was part of my own confusion' admitted Amelia

'Oh, I didn't think I would feel such pain again, she sounds like her, and all that's different is her memories' said Louca, tightening her grip

'Louca, calm yourself, it will be hard, I know how close you were, but it's not Sonja, we just have to adapt' said Amelia, calming her friend. Louca had come to her having spent forty years in agony, away from the coven and especially away from Viktor, and had come to Amelia nearly mad with grief, having lost her best friend to her father's insatiable wrath.

Louca calmed down after a while and Amelia hugged her. She was a gentle leader, not seeing the point in being like Viktor; cold, ruthless and commanding all the time, only needing such a steely attitude when necessary. It made eternity that much brighter to allow people in.

'Now, we have to keep her away, and during Markus's reign we keep her well away from the covens, it will be centuries before we can safely think of her, until then we must hide her existence from our memories, Louca you must keep a watch on her, make sure some of your contacts ask for help abroad'

Louca nodded, still calming herself.

'I know who would need help like that' she said

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"… but whenn a Lykenn be full transformede to beaste therein lieth great power, seemeth to be within an houre of Change theire greatest strength. Yet in killing Lykenn during transformation it reverteth instantly. They true animalls becometh, no communicatione seem possibel , excepting the call of rage, seemeth to be display of strength, to encourage or warne, it appeare."

A knock on the door brought Selene back from the world of Lykens, blood and rage.

'Stay you' she answered, but Kirsten entered anyway.

'We are leaving on the morrow,' she announced, 'There are Lykens in Romany'

Selene rolled her eyes

'They didn't send anyone on their way down to us?' she demanded referring to the Left Wing Death Dealers

'It is they who called us' said Kirsten and smiled slightly and left. The smile was a new addition to contact between Kirsten and Selene, Selene knew it was because right now Kirsten could have been removed from her position except that Selene had deliberately not asked for it. The smile was either an endearing tactic or a simple thank you.

Selene was on her way down to be briefed in the basement when Kraven caught her on the way down

'I was planning on having you beside me tomorrow' he said in easy confidence, gloating in what he was obviously trying to consider her loss and his gain of a deal

'I would have gone, but my first duty calls me' she answered and walked away

'Then cancel it! We have three times as many Death Dealers now' snapped Kraven, grabbing her arm

'Remove your hand' she snarled slowly and softly, and when he did she continued, 'Now we have, as you say, many more Death Dealers, half our numbers will stay behind to protect the covens, but as the strongest vampire of the Right Wings I am responsible for our group's safety as much as Kirsten is, and as her Right Wing Man I am doubly compelled to go; your pathetic secondary duty is nothing more than a breath in the storm' at that she turned, hid the combination from him (also adding a few fake digits) and went down into the basement feeling a minor victory.

'We all heard that' said Aata, jumping down off the ceiling, sporting a healing cut on his shoulder

'It was for revenge for his manner yesterday' said Selene, smiling back

'No, it's because you hate his vanity and like to make him feel smaller' said Aasta, coming over with a rough mug filled with blood from the dumb waitor for her brother

Selene didn't know what to say to that and simply kitted up.

'We've received word,' said Kirsten, coming from the weapons annex with four swords, an axe, a helmet and shield and two bags of crossbow bolts, 'we need to be gone as soon as we're ready'

'It's Four of the Clock, Shpaga' said Yulia who was also coming, 'you say the sun rises at around six?'

Helen, who knew Kirsten was about to retort in Russian and knew Yulia better, interrupted

'We can at least get to the coast in that time, perhaps get a ship and a captain, there is no time to wait until the sun goes down again if we can be on our way'

Kirsten shot Helen a venomous look and stalked off to see how the horses were doing.

'She is an angry woman, does she not ever smile?' asked Sléibhín quietly to Aasta. Aasta smiled shook her head. Selene smiled at the Right Wing Death Dealers and they suddenly became intensely interested in things like polishing, adjusting straps and checking the weight of their weapons.

They left within half an hour, riding the fastest horses in the country to the coast, and just made it to a barge by the time the sun came up. The bargeman was under the impression he was transporting a noble family and friends out of the country because they had offended the king. That was understandable, he had once been a rich merchant until he had offended a politician and look where he was now.

'You push things too far to the edge, I think' said Yulia to Kirsten, who declined to answer

'If we can get to your comrades that much sooner before the Lykens kill them all or begin to spread beyond control is it not worth it?' asked Ladarius. Yulia declined to answer

The journey to Romania took them through Belgium, Germany, Austria and Hungary before finally reaching Romania, they had gone with all haste, changing horses, feeding off wild animals and the odd traveller until the near starved thirty-odd vampires quietly took a couple of hamlets off the map and disguised it with fires, and finally reached a village near Arad called Vinga. It was hardly even a village, more like a rough collection of houses, some in the eastern part of the town showing signs of battle and struggle, the town appeared deserted.

'Vladimir!' called Yulia, having returned and met the others at the centre having found nothing. Selene looked out into the surrounding fields, and saw a fire appear.

'Over there' she said, and they set off as fast as they could go over. For a vampire it was a short run. What they found was enough to set everyone's eyes to their abnormal colour.

A female vampire with cuts a gashes all over her had taken refuge underneath a pile of regressed Lykens, and by the looks of things had had to survive on their blood. Selene felt sorry for her, but allowed Aata and Aasta to deal with her and find out what happened.

Flaming arrows, thought Selene looking at the burnt bodies, some obviously having screamed in pain in their dying moment with their extended teeth on display. They had been hit in non-essential area such as shoulders, arms and once or twice near to the heart but not actually on it.

Helen came over and knelt next to one of the bodies, taking from it a small dagger, its blade fire-damaged but she turned it over and sighed.

'You knew them?' asked Selene, walking over

'This was Vladimir' she said, no explanation. Selene put her hand on Helen's shoulder and looked up in the sky. It was a three-quarter moon. The attack had been within the last day or two given how the vampire bodies had not blown away much or crumbled, as it would do about two days after burning (this she knew from Tanis' notes). She felt sorry for the survivor, to have lost so many of her own group.

'They have established themselves here' said Aata, coming over, 'they convinced the villagers that a heathen god has blessed them, and that we are agents of the devil'

'So, they have brought humans into the war, why?' asked Helen 'What possible help can they be?'

'Allies are better than two sets of enemies, I think the families of the bitten would most like to believe it. There are animal remains everywhere, they did manage to live in some kind of harmony' he answered

Selene looked at Helen, who did not know what she was thinking and so they walked away to talk

'This is more dangerous than even an army of them; we lack a competent leader, the Lefts don't know of her weakness or about our losses, and we're in a worse situation than that' said Selene, Helen nodded and sighed again

'Selene, I know you hate it, but you should have taken the leadership off her, now we will have to wait until she makes a mistake and then you will have to pull command from her, you know if it comes to a head-to-head we will follow you, and the Lefts will follow where I lead, but all this will waste time in a situation where we need it most'

Selene neither nodded nor argued, Helen put a hand consolingly on her shoulder and left to find out more from the scene.

Aasta came over having left the vampire with her comrades and filled Selene in, before she even spoke to Kirsten, Selene noticed.

'Aata told you they live together with mortals, it's worse; they've created local legends about us, that we are beings completely without souls whereas they simply forget theirs at the full moon, to kill a Lyken even when he's transformed is subject to local laws, and the infection's spreading, half of these were killed by human arrows, the others torn up by Lykens and burnt. Ana managed to hide under some Lyken corpses, the locals leave them out for a day for the souls to be released, they will be back within hours.'

It was the worst situation possible. It was a choice of somehow dancing out of reach of human arrows and decimating an entire village just to kill the Lykens. The Lykens had learned to use people as a shield.

'We can either kill off the village or leave it so the Lykens begin to relax, we can kill them off bit by bit and wait for the mortals to do it themselves because living with animals like that will always spell disaster…' she said, staring at the village, 'but the second option means we settle here ourselves, somehow stay close but invisible, and it would be difficult, but it would mean the same amount of loss of mortal lives because the Lykens will do it themselves by accident' she said, the last words dripping with contempt, human/Lyken laws for heavens' sake!

'The difference is,' she continued, 'whether we kill the humans and the Lykens, or the Lykens kill the humans and we help them kill the Lykens, after staying here long enough to watch it happen'

A list ran through Aasta's mind, and they looked at each other knowing the second plan would require a lot of things; contacts in the village, a safe place to settle, a lot of luck to stop Lykens realising where they were and making a Lyken-Mortal army to send them off, a food supply strong enough for near forty vampires, the co-operation of said vampires, the convincing of or pulling of power from Kirsten, still more luck, and so on. But, if they were lucky enough, the Lykens would come themselves to defend their territory, and it would be a good old-fashioned battle to kill them all with minimum to no loss of mortal life, which was basically the name of the game.

Kirsten would easily choose option one; go in, kill everyone, burn the village, go home.

'We have near fifty vampires staying at the mansion' said Aasta, 'there we have reinforcements if we need, it also means we do not have to make haste back home, we have the time to stay and do this.'

Viktor would most likely have preferred option one; any human that fratternised and cooperated with a Lyken was worse than a Lyken and in no need of mercy, but Amelia was more sympathetic to their unpredictable temperament, their ignorance and their sentimentality, she could even have been called soft upon them, but one would have to have a death-wish to say so.

'I prefer option two,' said Selene decisively, 'let us speak to Yulia and Sléibhín'

It took some musing, and much discussion, but it came to the same conclusion as Selene. Aasta gave Selene a look; you should be leader, which Selene ignored and they spoke to most everyone before they brought it up with Kirsten.

'Option one' she said immediately, her face hard and cold, much like Viktor's when faced with such decisions.

'We have all decided option two' said Yulia

'My group will…'

'We chose,' said Ladarius suddenly, 'it is option two'

Kirsten stood rigid with fury. She glared at them all, seeing in them that they knew exactly what option two meant in terms of time, resources, skill and patience, and they knew she had none. As a leader, she had to stay with them, if she returned home it was the ultimate show of weakness and disgrace. She looked at Selene, fully ready to fly a punch or attack her, but saw in her eyes that Selene was no happier about her position than she was.

'Selene, by your duty as Wing Man I order you to comply with my decision'

'Then I give up my position as Wing Man, feel free to choose another, Shpaga' said Selene, choosing a more formal word instead of Leader or her name.

There was a long, cold silence as only vampires could have at a crossroads. Standing in a field of crumbling bodies and possibly some Lyken souls whispering to each other on the wind, just hours away from sunrise, no one moved, no words were spoken, they simply stood.

'I have decided,' said Kirsten, as by vampire custom such a silence was now a formal matter and had to be addressed formally, 'and I relinquish my position. Selene, as Wing Man, you may either take it, or choose one to fill it, but I will have none of it. You will see me on the battlefield and nowhere else'

Selene nodded and watched their ex-leader walk away. The problem was, like all good leaders, she had never wanted it. She wasn't ambitious and didn't think she could control anyone, control was what you did yourself in hope that everyone else was doing the same thing so as to achieve the same goal.

'I would speak to my group alone, Ekran' she said to Yulia, who nodded and gestured gracefully for them to go, take their time.

'We must choose considering all options' said Selene the minute they were alone

'Selene,' said Helen, 'we have to choose for the situation now, we can call an official decision with Amelia presiding, but for now I am the ranking eldest here, and I choose you as Shpaga'

'No' said Selene, who had been hoping to the position to Helen

'No, Selene, you have the strongest instincts and the greatest strength, you unite the Right Wing with no more than simply being who you are, and by that I have decided we will make use of it, in a situation like that we must have a leader we trust, we all fall behind you in an emergency, so just do what you have always done knowing we will follow you. I will do what I have always done and be who I am'

There wasn't a lot of arguing one could make there. Selene looked at the faces that for seventy-odd years she had grown to know as intimately as her own, and saw nothing but agreement, a peaceful even joyful expression in all of them. No smiles or grins, simply near-blank but completely confident.

'Then Aasta and Aata are joint Wing Men' she said. The twins nodded their response. Selene saw the sky lightening and went back to the Lefts, who stood exactly as they had left them and they discussed what they would do.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

To Selene's relief there was practically no difference to the group now she was Shpaga, only the Russians addressed her formally sometimes (before she gave them a dangerous look and it was quickly abandoned) and now they didn't have to worry about Kirsten's reactions and judgement on things.

They settled in to an ancient, abandoned village that they presumed had once been a working one before Vinga had brought everyone together in its advantageous position. It had taken some subtle repairs to make it sunproof, but they were built inwards so no passer-by would see anything suggesting new occupants. They had, from experience, commandeered the basements of the inn, which had once held beer and grain but now was empty and was large enough for all except four any given time. Selene had agreed with Yulia that ten would go on two-day duties, five from each group, picked at random to encourage new friendships (that is, working relationships, the social part being a secondary bonus). They had chosen to build a two-person lookout post in the trees just on the outside of the village, in the village each vampire had their own lookout in a house or barn, forming a circle around the inn, and used the old trick of standing in the shadows and looking through the windows for any sign of anything. They communicated to pass the time, either by their steel-framed mirrors with its own extendable handles to flash a code (vampires had enough time to figure out a code that communicated satisfactorily and learn it all), or they simply made sure no one was around to see and sent each other messages using a piece of yarn stretched across and a pigeon-message tube sent across. Selene allowed her sense of humour to come out more in these times, as she had agreed with Yulia that sounds were more dangerous and therefore speech above a low speaking voice when on guard was forbidden, and so to lighten the time staying in the shadows she would readily join the conversations and joke with the others. In this time they taught each other languages and the culture of the original countries. Chinese was agreed to be the hardest and Irish Gaelic the most annoying, whilst Russian was picked up the fastest and for Arabic the slowest.

After two weeks with ten on duty, five were going out every night to investigate the village, first as 'moving shadows', speaking to no one, staying in the background, and picking up local knowledge, and slowly when they could pass as returning travellers to the area, they mixed in more, it was becoming amusing as more groups came at a time and got introduced to each other at the public houses and gambling houses by strangers. Selene chose to never go on these excursions, no more eager to meet the mortals and try to discover who was human and who were Lykens than she was to walk into the sun. She was annoyed with their situation, their lack of certainty of what might happen next; would the Lykens move into a defensive strike to protect their mortals as they hoped, or would they bring the mortals with them and force them to exterminate the entire village? Would they simply refuse to act and perhaps force the vampires to act like assassins, killing no more than four per month and do what they could to make them into accidents? Selene sympathised with Kirsten's choice, but would not compromise the entire reason they fought the Lykens in the first place; to protect the human race, or rather to keep the war under cover of mystery and ignorance so as to prevent an uprising of thousands of humans who need only come one night with torches to ward off these night creatures and monsters….

She had finally received her journals from home. With them came a message of approval from Amelia of their actions (this was obviously following a request of confirmation sent by an angry Kirsten because no one else had sent one), and it appeared she did not know of the change of circumstances within the group. Selene had sent the messenger back informing her of this, also a note of thanks to Tanis who had gathered her journals for her (with a note in the back of the last one informing her Kraven had tried to withhold them, perhaps to force a reaction or to hurry her home).

Amazing, she thought, you can't ever just be on a mission now, politics follows you everywhere, even into a forsaken patch of Romania in a crumbling village. She turned to another page and found something from Amelia, much to her surprise.

'_Kirsten returned home and in my court resideth, but little of your missions she will speak, upon thy return a meetinge of minds will reacheth, on thine personal matters may this business affect not'_

Selene winced slightly at the reprimanding tone, a dissatisfied and somewhat dishonoured Leader was always going to affect Amelia's personal matters. She then gave the letter to Helen who decoded it further.

'Kirsten's return is causing an uprise of rumours but isn't talking about why she's returned and isn't Leader, by the sounds of it she's not letting anyone call her Leader or Shpaga, and only told Amelia that she's given command to you. This is destabilising the politics of the whole house, Kraven might even be trying to get his position back…' Helen paused, reading it again, 'she wants a private meeting with you, to discuss how both of you are going to handle this, you're now Viktor's representative as being Shpaga you know'

Selene didn't grimace but didn't need to, she just had a hard expression she had whenever Kirsten was angry, when Kraven was too near here (or even just in the room depending on her mood) or when someone called her Shpaga.

Helen then asked her what she wished to say back.

'Whatever you think' said Selene, shaking her head slightly

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

For near two months they did nothing but watch, wait and quietly gather knowledge. Selene and Yulia were frustrated, the only good news was that travellers were very common and no one had noticed at all that at any one time there were five cloaked, vague figures were in the background. In this day and age in this country cloaks were standard dress. There were usually these kinds of people around, people who didn't want to be noticed…

'We begin infiltrate, but still at distance' said Yulia in Russian, and everyone nodded. It had become the staple language as everyone here spoke it and the only way to become fluent was to keep at it at all times. In two months they were all at least at conversation level.

Selene took the first group of six into the village and arranged to stay at The Black Horse, which was a treat for everyone to sleep in better beds than they could expect at the cheaper place. There was also a butcher just next door who kept blood in containers before throwing it out because he had already made so much black pudding to satisfy everyone. They were partial to pig's blood after living on birds and wildlife once every three days for near three months. They had bribed a local urchin, whom no one in the village liked at all because he tended to prank people, but he was getting money for stealing blood for a bunch of travelling scientists. A woman in the group called Yulia was especially nice to him and in her he found a motherly figure he had never had and at the tender age of nine he was fully ready to believe in.

Selene had, in their months in stake-out, formed an idea of how they were going to extract the werewolves from the town and leave the human population intact. There were bigger numbers of werewolves were making themselves comfortable in the town every passing week, the human inhabitants were getting nervous; their family member/s turning into dark, furious creatures that only attacked animals and whom they truly hated was fine, it was a big adjustment but better the devil you know, eh? Ha ha ha…

Love, Selene had noted with interest, could hold back the animal's rage enough to prevent an attack, but a whole load of strangers suddenly appearing to gather at this vampire-free beacon of safety and acceptance had no such link to the inhabitants. Selene listened to whispered conversation and drunken confessions and knew the next full moon was a wonderful opportunity.

'It is a simply matter of timing,' she said to Yulia in sharing her idea, 'upon the full moon there will be Lyken war; the strangers attacking mortals and the family Lykens defending them, at which point we draw them all out, draw the attack onto us outside the village and by then the Lykens will all be too intent on killing their blood enemy to think of anything else. Upon the aftermath, we stay long enough to allow the illusion of heroes coming to save the humans, and leave'

Yulia agreed to think about it and discuss it with her team.

Helen glowed with pride when she heard. Selene may well be a little aloof but she was an Aasta who had seriously worried in the beginning that they would have to destroy the village in the end. Aasta, who had been worried for months, smiled properly for the first time in weeks.

The full moon fast approached, there were four deaths in bar-fights between strangers and locals, the local urchin boy had taken to staying at The Black Horse inn where the scientists managed to have a half-mile radius of calm and order because no one around fancied picking a fight with them. One of his favourite places to be at night was on the roof, and for the first time he climbed the inn's roof, and he suddenly found one of the women of his employers up there already.

Selene knew he was on his way up, having heard his scuffling from below but cast a look of surprise at him to praise his skills. She internally withdrew from him, a small human boy, and upon noticing this in herself she reversed it and nodded to him in greeting.

'It's so quiet' he said, settling down beside her as she crouched.

'It is full moon tomorrow night,' she answered, 'it's the deep breath before it plunges to hell'

'You're here to fight them?' asked the boy, causing Selene to look somewhat blankly at him, questioning what he knew

'Oma was from Germany, she talked about people with cold skin and only drank blood, and couldn't go into light' explained the urchin, causing Selene to nod quietly

'You have a good mind and nerves of steel,' she said, 'you know what we are and yet are not much afraid'

'You won't hurt me; you drink pigs' blood' said the urchin calmly

Selene liked this boy, she had assumed Yulia had taken to him because she had been a mother of three before a wandering vampire had posed as a doctor and had treated her blood disease by draining it completely. She had forced herself to leave that same night, half-blind from the process of changing and ravenous for blood, and had massacred an entire herd of cattle in her pain and hunger.

Selene spoke quietly with him, how they came to be here, how they had decided what to do about this problem, how they knew the entire village would either tear itself apart or be burned to the ground since mortals and immortals that fed on them simply could not reside together.

'Why do you fight them?' asked the boy

'We have always fought them' said Selene, and the boy stayed quiet, he had actually meant why she fought them, but he knew she would not answer.

Selene watched the quiet town, which was verging on being a city, a fortress, of immortals, using the mortals as the wall and sunlight as the moat, but as the sun's first rays began to herald the rising of the last day before the battle plunged everything into chaos, Selene smiled very slightly, her eyes white-blue, her skin and nerves tingled in anticipation, her blood feeling almost cold in her silent rage. She had waited for such a battle, for such a feast of revenge, for nearly a century; coincidentally today marked the 79th anniversary of her biting, tonight she would have made them pay with every scream, roar and drop of blood they had for every day she had had to live without… them.


	6. The Legacy of Immortals

Amelia was reading the records Tanis had kept over the centuries. She read a particular passage she thought Viktor might be interested in, when Selene walked in with no knock, no honour given or taken, she simply walked in looking battered and healing from wounds that had gone to the bone, she even smelled like the sun had got her.

'Rukovodityai, the mission was a success' she said quietly, her voice low and heavy with exhaustion and, as she noticed, was spoken in Russian. It was hardly surprising given they had spent five months there, making it the most adventurous mission ever, only she could have made it happen.

'Selene, away with results and that clutter, what happened?' she asked, beckoning her forward. Selene seemed at a genuine loss, barely recognising where she was or what was going on, her armour and leather stinking of blood, her eyes looking completely through her

'They're dead'

There was a long silence, Amelia asked her questions, how did they die, what had been the utmost failing in their actions, Selene knew her mouth was moving and was likely to give the best answers she could but it was completely unconscious, Selene had finally done what she had set out from Vinga to do, and had now done it.

Amelia eventually dismissed her.

Selene had gone to her room, burned her leather garments in the fireplace, and cleaned her weapons, putting her old shield (which clipped as a double breast-plate on her front) and three long knives onto the scrap-pile as they were damaged beyond repair. She took out her swords, and stopped.

_Cutting through the masses of dark, angry shapes like a farmer through wheat, only the blades whirled and spun, gracefully and with a cold, lethal sense of purpose, Selene felt her identity, her own self slip away into the dark while she tried to keep track of everyone on the field…_

Selene, not knowing what to do, put on the rest of her indoor clothes, which she realised she had half done by autopilot completely, and went down to the kitchen. There she sat at the wooden table and nodded at someone, and was given a pewter pint mug full of fresh blood. She didn't grimace as her tongue told her it was cows blood, she barely felt anything, her brain which had already gone through the ultimate procedure of adapting to shock and loss was already numbing the areas of worst pain.

Selene then went to her bed, because she couldn't bear to go down to the basement, and lay on her bed.

_It was hard, at points she saw a glimpse of one or another, Yulia, Aata, Helen, but they were gone the next blink, and there was so many…_

_Her memory appeared to be replaying itself because the general sense of disbelief was, to her brain's record of survival, the first thing to be shifted. _

_There were big blank periods, she assumed this was simply pure instinct taking over, and with a sick wrench of realisation she remembered Aasta, Ladarius, Mischa, Jasper, The New World Vampire, the Irish vampire, and many others whose faces she knew so well were all dead. Rage, already present, dropped her core temperature a couple of degrees and everything was again blank. _

_Flickers of roaring monsters, the savage pleasure of killing, bloodied teeth, claws and talons, nothing was clear, but she knew something was going wrong…_

_She met with Yulia, Helen, Aata, Pedro, and what was left of the others, twelve in all, and they grouped together, forming two circles of ranks, the inner circle defending the outer ranks and then switching places, they formed a wider and wider circle as they deemed was safe as the numbers dwindled, there was about five times as many Lykens as vampires, until suddenly a mad rush took out five more. Selene took a split second while everyone was understanding what had just happened and surveyed the field. There was so many more Lykens in this field then could ever have fitted in the town, they must have attracted every Lyken for miles into the battle. She felt, suddenly, with her very veins, every scream her comrades had uttered, they somehow had a strange strengthening and weakening sensation in her; the coldness had disappeared, her brain and body were at their limits, and, she realised, the sun was coming up. She disembowelled a Lyken attempting to take Helen in the side, and was therefore blocked when three more pounced. _

_There was screaming, they were all dying, Selene was bleeding badly from all kinds of wounds, she realised somewhere in the back of her brain that Lykens could manipulate weapons, like a sharp, broken branch like a spear, heavy objects like a club, but these were dropped again and teeth, claws and bare strength of legs, arms and back were employed again. _

_Helen, with the strength as only a very old vampire could have, sprung up again, her mouth black with blood of Lykens hastily swallowed to sustain her (a last-ditch attempt to keep fighting, to not die) and was still fighting with a broken sword, half a shattered shield and her teeth. _

_Suddenly Selene woke, everything was still, utterly still. She was crushed to the ground, by what she couldn't tell until the smell told her it was corpses of Lykens. A hand touched her arm on the other side. With an enormous effort she managed to turn her head and lie facing, to her enormous relief, Helen._

_Helen lay like one who had one breath left. She had three Lykens arranged awkwardly over them to give them shelter from the sun, so they were pinned down by the sheer weight to the lower body shield but she at least managed to lean them on each other to create head-space._

'_You have to go, Selene' she said quietly. Selene didn't answer, Helen knew what she would say_

'_You have a duty, you must… go to Amelia' she commanded with all her strength_

'_Come with me,' said Selene, indicating with a jerk of her head the throat of a Lyken above her_

'_I'm beyond that' said Helen, and Selene saw blood was actually flowing from her nose and mouth instead of just being there from a desperate feed._

'_I can't, I'm not going…'_

'_Selene, I saved you and your… life… is mine, we all saved you, won fairly on… the battle of bloods… you will do this, as we the dead command you'_

'_Where is that from?' demanded Selene_

'_Gregor to Zakhar, the battle after Lucian… you are the strongest survivor, and they who lie dying have given their blood for you, you see? We can chose to deny you right to die here with us, to send a message back'_

_Selene knew tears were falling freely from her eyes because they were dripping off her nose and some falling into her mouth_

'_Please' she whispered_

'_No' said Helen, who was fast going blind and cold and feeling everything somehow getting beyond reach_

'_What message?' Selene asked finally, realising every second was costing Helen strength_

'_What happened, how we died' _

_There was a long, awful silence, Helen had died, her blood, Selene had realised, had only been partly dammed by the crush of bodies, and Selene (who was on the lower ground of a slight hill which they had used just hours ago to gain advantage) was now lying in her friend's blood, Selene had not noticed, or thought it was from the Lykens, but as she lay she realised a small number of things; the blood was from Helen, it had coagulated in places showing she had lay there bleeding to death while Selene had been unconscious, all the bodies around her were drained of blood, Selene's mouth tasted foul; Helen had with all the time they had left before sunrise, given her the blood of the bodies around to strengthen her, she could hear men shuffling around outside her cocoon of dead flesh and drying blood, on her other side Pedro was lying, and he was holding her hand as he had died. Selene realised a few things at once; the men would soon discover her there, and they were not going to treat the vampires like heroes, or indeed help, most likely they would kill her. She also could tell that it was a cloudy day but it was midday. _

_The journey back had been the worst in Selene's memory. She had had to run, just as the sun was emerging from behind a cloud, and had bolted with every bit of strength she had to the abandoned village, where she could only stay a little while because she had to wait in the sheltered place for a mortal to come in after her and be her emergency rations. It had been a furious young girl with a wedding band, about Selene's age when she had been bitten. She had drained her entirely of blood, and had made sure she wouldn't turn by ramming what was left of her last arrow into her heart. She had then had to run when the sun had gone in, taking four arrows to the back and left side, and had continued running, smoking slightly in the weak sun, blood running freely from her new wounds. The human blood had helped, she realised how months of animal blood had in fact weakened them, had not given them the full strength and potential human blood could. She knew this because the human blood had reached places that had been unconsciously starving, and her wounds were healing much faster depite the sun, pigs blood had a much slower healing ability and weaker feeling of satisfaction._

_She finally reached Belgium to the vampire safe-house, and had caught the boat they had an understanding with for years by a few minutes. She had sat in the cargo hold and simply hugged her knees to her chest, feeling so empty and hollow she didn't understand how she didn't collapse from within. Every nerve and cell in her wanted to turn to the wall and die, she had not reached that level of loss with her own family, but they had only been family for twenty years, against just under eighty years of unparalleled dedication between herself and the Death Dealers, and the Shield Wing had slipped into the ranks of those she cared for without any effort, they had simply accepted each other and fought for each other with the same level of trust._

And suddenly she was here, had given the message, and was now listening for familiar sounds of the others undoing armour, taking off leather, chainmail, weapons, speaking quietly to each other, smiling and laughing. She kept waiting for Helen, Aasta, Pedro or Ladarius to just walk in.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Amelia had lost all her Death-Dealers in a similar way to Selene, but over three battles in her reign after Viktor had gone to sleep, leaving very angry, un-evolved Lykens and furious human tenants on his empire of land, Selene's eyes asked her the same question she had screamed internally for years after the last had died, after Sonja, whom she had loved as a niece, or sister, but a comrade, had been put to death for falling in love with the wrong sort, Sonja whom she had trained herself, shed her blood for, been saved by (more than once, as she could recall on the field), and had left entrusted with rebuilding the Death Dealers to keep up the fight while Amelia retired to a life of simply living with them around her. She saw so much of herself in Selene, in her torturous pain leaking from every pore and survivor's guilt (despite the Last Command) wreaking havoc within her soul and bones.

Louca had drifted and appeared ghost-like to her side and they took comfort in each other's presence, being the only two who knew, who had seen everything and still lived, having heard of how the only other had chosen Selene to go back, knowing Selene was the only one who could rebuild the Death Dealers and keep it alive. Amelia had known this the minute she had received news from Kirsten that Selene was Shpaga. Kirsten, bless her, had been utterly unaware of this, and had come home raging and spitting like an angry cat, Amelia had placated her with promises of meetings, talks and reviews, but in a community of warriors the line had to be carried on by the strongest, and Viktor, having favoured Selene in the way she resembled Sonja so much, had unwittingly created the one person who could in fact do what Amelia and Sonja had done before her and Kirsten was simply unable to do.

'Ah me' she sighed

In her room, Selene was already wondering what she was going to do about what she had left of the Death Dealers. They had serious training and proving to do before she could consider them even acolytes to what her comrades had been.


	7. Rebuilding

Selene sent a message to all the Death Dealers to meet her in the basement. She needed, having read all her journals, written up everything new, and avoided human contact for a month, to get back into her normal rhythm, or since the old one had largely been woven into her team's rhythms she would have invent one.

On her way back she was suddenly met by a muscular vampire who had been a friend of Helen's in the social circles, an African man who had got on a boat from Morocco having fled an arranged marriage in his tribe, and on his arrival in Spain had been welcomed into the happy embrace of a Spanish vampire who was out collecting followers.

Newly christened Kahn, the new arrival felt safe in his new environment, no one was after him because no one had heard of Adnan Kumi, and this man, who seemed to have a whole family of strays, was being kind to him. To Kahn, he had landed in paradise. He was an adventurous man, which was discouraged by his defensive-thinking father who had arranged a bride in the nearest tribe to tie him down at home, and his new friend simply gave him money for food (such food!) and told him to explore (and what a place!). It was a year before his doting friend, Renaldo, took his to a private club. Suddenly, just because a curious woman bit him while he was a bit drunk, and woke up feeling very strange, Renaldo threw things around in a fury. How could he have been so stupid, he demanded, how could he have let this happen? Kahn was confused, because suddenly all the people around him had a strange lure to them, except for Renaldo, whom he also felt some stirring rebellion against, some strange aggressiveness. Renaldo had told him to go, snapping out quickly with hurtful disinterest that he was now a vampire and should keep away from the sun and feed on animals when possible, and Kahn left. He was picked up by another vampire in France who brought him back to the mansion in England, and Helen had kept an eye on him ever since.

But Selene listened to his plight; he wanted to be in the Death Dealers' ranks, he had had warrior training with his people, and was getting increasingly cramped and frustrated by the vampires he had kept tabs on for Helen. It was because Helen had saved him from the gutter and saved him from death in the sun that he was enduring it anyway, but now, he pleaded, with her death he could at last do as he wished to do.

Selene saw what Helen would have so liked in him; a healthy respect for what mattered and what didn't, an internal strength (he had run away from his people and all that he knew, that took guts) and had survived as a bewildered and rogue vampire in the streets of Paris where vampires never went for good reason (and that took survival instincts) and saw how he had been loyal to Helen's wishes, further sweetening him to her.

'This is the code' she said after a pause, and ushered him inside, telling him to wait for her

Kahn gave her a grateful, relieved smile and went inside. Selene shut the door after him and paused a moment. She very nearly smiled – Helen had always been a subtle creature, and had even put reserves away in secret places for her to rebuild the crushed Death Dealers' ranks.

You should have Shpaga if only you'd wanted to, she thought, and felt a barb of survivor's guilt; then she could have lay with her comrades on the field, and drift away on the wind when the villager exposed them under their piles of Lyken dead… but Helen had not wanted to give up that right, had decided her love for her comrades was too great to leave them in ashes on a field to go and continue the battle with new ranks…

Selene came to; Kraven had just entered the corridor. She breathed out through her nose in internal contempt and entered the code

'Selene' he called softly, but she just looked at him and opened the door, and stepped through it, but Kraven caught the door before she could close it in his face.

'Not now' she said, fixing him with a cold look

'You have not spoken to me since your return; remember your duty to me'

'It died with them and you know it' she said quietly but flatly and pulled the door so hard he would either have to let go or risk losing fingers.

Kraven snarled quietly at the door and stalked away.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Selene took stock. There were the junior members of both groups who had been left to train further, these she set aside in her mind for consideration and looked at new members. Kahn she nodded to, other members she also took note of and asked quietly why they were here.

'I asked to be here' said a Dutch vampire who was barely a decade old, and explained he had been a soldier before an unfortunate encounter in a brothel had forced him to, for the sake of his family, pretend to be dead and had to struggle his way out from his own grave. Selene did not smile at the joke and asked the others what their reasons were, and turned out a couple who had obviously got a little bored with court antics and were looking for thrills.

To her surprise, the silvery Irish Móirne stepped forward.

Revenge, she said simply in Selene's mind. Selene nodded, understanding that she had centuries more training than she herself had and, in her view, the best reason to join. She gave a warning made of flashes of her own memories of what could happen and how she must be prepared, but they only nodded once to each other in mutual understanding while everyone else appeared puzzled.

'Kyle, report' she said, sitting on a table. She nodded to the others who all sat down. There was about thirty in all, about a third of what there used to be. As the rumours of what Selene and the others had faced a few of the protégés and weaker links in the groups had dropped out. Good, in Selene's opinion.

'We do have problems' he said

'They are?'

'We think either werewolves or witnesses have been spreading rumours,' he said, also implying how unlikely he thought witnesses were, 'in the nearby villages butchers are revealing who buys blood along with meat – especially if blood outweighs the meat"

'So we're being uncovered?' asked Selene, suddenly fierce in the eyes and quick in her questions

'It's uncertain, our suppliers don't know for sure who to really be suspicious of; there are people who simply like black pudding and no other type of meat, for other it is all they can afford, for us we blend in with 'equal measures'" he said, smiling. Selene did not know this and gestured for him to explain

'We make profit from the meat and keep the blood, it is not unusual for butchers to simply throw the blood away or keep it all, it was Kahn's idea'

Kahn carefully showed no expression but Selene gave him a small nod and a hint of a smile. He nodded awkwardly back and remained poker-faced in his embarrassment.

'Then we leave England' she said almost casually, but this was met with an atmosphere of disbelief so thick she felt the air had turned solid with it

'So…' began one, and words faltered

'We are not risking the coven, or the Elders, we begin now' she answered, feeling a shadow brush over her mind

The shadow affected Móirne, who didn't flinch but she closed her eyes momentarily and stared at the floor, everyone else saw the shadow and immediately saw why she was never going to risk anything other than herself for any reason

'We shall ask Amelia and Tanis, Amelia will have to approve but I believe she will, Tanis oversaw the details of moving last time' she explained


	8. Time in a Circle

Selene went out alone. A rare treat nowadays since the decision to move was finalised, training the new Death Dealers and the occasional hunt for Lykens, Selene had been wanting more and more time on her own. She had first buried herself in what must be done, supervising everything and, come to think of it, not even sleeping since the night she got back. She didn't think about how long she'd been back, but her sleeping pattern had not changed since Romania. To put it bluntly, she didn't, she had been so alert for anything to go wrong, whether it be English humans or Romanian towns filled with woefully ignorant inhabitants, something was about to go wrong if she didn't pay constant attention.

Tonight she had gone into the depths of London and sat in the rain listening to human sounds. It was easy for a vampire to behave much like a spider on a web of sound patterns, the smallest possible disturbance in the patterns would have her in its exact location, teeth bared, in minutes. Usually said disturbance was made by a scream, not the usual scream of rape or murder which she may answer anyway if she was bored or hungry (since Romania her mortal/immortal morality had been dented and damaged), but a scream of primal terror facing the unknown with fangs attached.

With a tiny stir in the brain she realised she had been listening to the other set of sounds she was used to hearing as part of the web; the presence of twenty-eight others in formation around her, doing what she was doing, expanding the web in all directions… she exhaled in personal exasperation, feeling a slight flinch from the raw hurt.

The truth was she was out here because she was so unhappy she couldn't bear to be inside. She was awkward and uncomfortable with her new team, from which only about a handful could teach her anything as much as she 'taught' them, which she was more used to. Her learning cycle had come to an abrupt end and her mind still expected someone to tell her something she hadn't thought of yet, to remind her of something, teach or ANYTHING… there was no subtle infrastructure in the group, no shared experiences to speak of, the 'old ways' the Death Dealers unconsciously lived by, on the set example of the other, older vampires (which, to be fair, Selene had been the youngest of) had gone, they didn't know the old code, the prayer, the rules, or the formal channels through which they spoke to the court members (that is to say, vampires that weren't Death Dealers or the Elders), they didn't even know what a _geþafsumnes _was, nothing. They had muscle and a desire to kill.

To make matters worse, all the things she now lived without made her open to attack by the court members.

As she laid in her room, unable to move or speak, after she had remembered everything, the court members, whether they were 'friends' of… them… or old vampires sensitive to change, or really anything, they came in one by one and attacked her. It was a full-on mental attack on her leadership, she had led them to their deaths, it was her responsibility, she had cashed in their lives for her escape, she was the least deserving, the least experienced and therefore should have been the first to die, but instead she came back here, expecting the Last Command to wash with them. She had let the flow of barbs and sharp words fall on her, simply taking it, offering little to fight with or defend herself with, mostly because it sort of helped to hear someone else speak what she already felt.

Everyone who wasn't a new Death Dealer or Amelia appeared to be angry the best of their ancient line of defence had simply extinguished all in one go.

'They've made you a scape-goat,' said Louca, who was the only person who appeared to have any sympathy for Selene and thus sat with her when they ate, 'they have grown accustomed to the same faces meaning they are safe, the same ones they think nothing could kill, Kirsten left a month before you returned and no one has seen her… they're afraid. They think you somehow…'

'They're right' said Selene

'You didn't do anything, you say you're here because of the Last Command, that means they sent you, I was friends with Aasta, we knew you'd rather die yourself then leave them'

Selene hadn't known Aasta had been friends with Louca and looked quizzically at her, causing her to blush.

'I had… known her brother very well' she explained, but no further

'I'm sorry' said Selene, thinking suddenly of Pedro holding her hand

'It was a long time ago… he would tell you to stop feeling so sorry for them and for you and to act like all is normal'

'Yes, he would' said Selene, and they stopped talking. Louca was looking over Selene's shoulder and her face went carefully blank. Selene watched her expression flicker with a tinge of distaste, but too late, Kraven approached from behind her.

'I heard' he said, sitting down, Selene said nothing

'I know the pain you must feel' he said putting a hand on her shoulder. Selene reached for her glass, dislodging his hand and took a drink.

'I was hoping you would-'

'No' said Selene quietly and only needed to glance at Louca to signal they were leaving. Kraven reached for her hand, gently, and held it.

'You should not suffer this alone' he said, but his sounded so false it was like he had poured acid in her ears

'You would be of no comfort' Selene snarled softly, venomously, eyes suddenly white-blue in sudden rage. Kraven released her hand and she stalked away. She was certain Kraven had detected the element of accusation, and felt almost somehow better.

She had gone out the same night, as they had drunk their meal at dusk, and she sat in the rain. These Death Dealers were really all she had left. Even Amelia looked her with some degree of pity; the one who lost her crew.

They are like I was, she thought, knowing this is what Aasta would say. Aasta would have added that she was in fact blessed to have so clear an insight into them, and could teach them the things that had made her, in one century, what she is now.

When I'm sure about anything, thought Selene, it's either that rare gift of the moment, or because I haven't thought about something enough. It takes nerve to admit you're uncertain, and more nerve still to take anything as slowly as you should… it takes faith for them not to try and make the decision for you…

Then I'll teach them to be uncertain. She thought addressing them, at which point she nearly turned round to see which one was closest in formation to her, but just as she nearly physically turned her head she felt herself crash head-long into the stone wall of reality and suddenly felt a spike of rage. Rage at them, at herself- no, at THEM!

I should hate myself for being alive, she told them, but I don't because _you_ sent me, I could only be Shpaga to you, but you still sent me! To repeat what can't be copied, and I wouldn't wish to anyway, but you _knew_ that!

She sighed, seeing herself for what she had become with the new group – cold and distant, withdrawn. The spitting image of Kirsten. Kirsten who had become leader for Viktor (because he'd asked her to), Kirsten who had replaced Kraven, the hated… and had become what he had been before he had changed into what he is now…

The reason I am Shpaga was so that I would not be her, or become her, she thought, but then I didn't expect you all to die, not all at once, not leaving me behind, leaving me as the whole example of what we were – you trusted me, not just to be a leader like I thought, as if that wasn't enough, you want me to not be Kirtsen for THEM! To lead them and recreate us…

With empathy, said Ladarius' voice

Kirsten followed the path of least resistence, thought Selene, and I'm already on it, and we both saw where it leads to… I was even part of where it leads to, she added. Next step after that is becoming Kraven, and she left before that… Kraven who wanted to be the Death Dealer he _was_ and yet somehow not be one… like he is, now grabbing at anything with both hands… to not have the pain of losing his group again, but sort of live the ghost of comradeship he'd had with them, which we had, which we lived by on their example… you sent me, she realised remembering Pedro's last act was to hold her hand, to not repeat the same mistakes… as the youngest, the least experienced you knew I had the best chance.

Kraven would expect me to justify what he is, to see me follow his and Kirsten's path and crow 'Even the great, wonderful Selene falls!' she could almost hear him say it and spat unconsciously on the roof tiles.

She realised numbly the rain had stopped.

I knew all this… she thought, but I also knew that I can't. I can't give them the same empathy…

The stars were beginning to fade – humans often thought light would lighten the darkness first before dimming the stars, but for them who lived in the dark they saw how light affected light first before the dark was changed and burned away. From this she knew she had a while longer before needing to get back.

She contemplated her new team, in a lighter way than she had previously ignored or avoided. In truth they all did remind her in ways of herself, holding weapons as if they were just lengths of metal or wood, not as extensions of themselves. Selene could train that out of them in weeks, or months. She would lead them, using the old contacts and even a few of theirs, to fight fights she had fought at their stage.

She had, according to her old group, residual blood memories from Viktor, hence her talent in the field… they would just have to rise to her standard, she decided, before getting up and lightly padding back to her horse four streets away.

Returning to the mansion she nodded to the guards, whom had received regular training with her at various points, who did things like shutting the windows, guarding the gates in outside shelters as well as from the inside the mansion. They were key in the move to Russia.

She sent messages to the Death Dealers to meet her in the basement. When they all arrived she simply behaved like this was another meeting. She expected the old resistance to them, the coldness but felt nothing. She actually felt much more at ease with them. Móirne was, obviously, the first to notice and gave her a hint of a smile. Selene merely accepted the smile with a degree of a nod and began as normal asking everyone what they had heard.

Strange attacks in Spain again, said Jacob, and Africa, mostly the south, added Kahn. As others added rumours from the East Selene noted they were in places where it was said day dominated over night. There were, said Móirne, attacks in Russia and Finland.

Selene nodded and instead of making a plan, she found herself saying something else.

'Training is over,' she said, 'this means three things. Whatever life you had before is over, you have traded it all with no exception for this life we chose. We have no dealings with the court, there is no alliance and we speak through the formal channels.' This caused a small stir, some even frowned, but Selene took note of who they were and carried on, 'Second, learn the Death Dealer's Code and Prayer, they are our rules, even the Elders don't go above them

Third' she hesistated, 'I let them go' she said, each word forced, 'so, it means I am your Shpaga, learning to be one of you as much as you learn from me…' she took in a breath, just as she Móirne made eye contact

_Explain to them later about the Last Command and what it means for them_, Selene told her

_Only if you don't_, she said back, frowning slightly

'So is that understood?' asked Selene, at which Móirne annoyed her by standing to ask a question

'Tell us what happened – the Last Command'

Selene gave her the smallest hint of a glare and told them. In an odd way, as she told them everything from the journey there, the mission, the end, and the journey home, she felt whatever hold she had left of Them slip away. She felt the cables that had anchored her for decades, which had mostly been rooted in them, return and anchor in herself. As she explained, she felt her acceptance of the new ones grow.

'The… the idea, or, the soul,' she continued, deliberately rephrasing and hesitating to show how such things were usually undefined and sacred, 'of the Last Command is the same as the Code and the Prayer… we… well, we gave our blood to and for each other, over and over on the field, so… so because of this, of the shared soul, we're bound to it, to each other…' she sighed and carried on, hating this part, 'as the chosen survivor, I was bound to obey them, I had to… bring their blood, no, their legacy home, to pass to you.' She paused a moment and went back to a simple telling-mode she was more comfortable with, 'The Last Command was given because they knew I'd rather die on the field with them with my honour and theirs together ,than leave them, than bring their honour back to teach others about it'

Móirne, who was watching the entire memory of the whole thing (which had things she would never tell anyone about), was in silent tears.

Everyone listened and stayed in complete silence, their faces disconcertingly blank.

Móirne saw Helen's last words just as Selene was finishing and caught her eye

_She meant us_

_What? _

_Part of the Last Command is using their deaths to unite the new ones, to bind us to each and to them, past future, see?_

Selene nearly broke down in tears herself. It was just like Helen to mean that.

They went to dine together. The Death Dealers booted court members who had been gradually taking their seats in their area of the room, and Selene proposed a toast to their dead

'To our dead' they echoed

'There'll never be another like Helen' said Móirne quietly

'No… but you remind me of her'

Móirne only frowned slightly, still gazing at the wooden table surface

'She could do what I can't, and what I could do she did so much better – she had empathy that could melt the rocks'

'She could have come back,' lamented Selene, quieter still, confiding her worst secret to her, 'She could have done this so much better than I'

Móirne shook her head and met her gaze 'She was never so strong as you,' she said 'She was too much part of them to let go and ever move on, she feared that she'd even chose to make their mistakes,' indicating Kraven and Kirsten, 'rather than do what you've done, she would stand in the sun rather than go back. Only you could, that's why you're Shpaga. However you slice it, it will hurt and anger you but this is what we chose'

Selene nodded.

Three days later they went to Spain, during the winter, and found the Lykens hiding in the mountains. It was too late to save the village, but Selene then showed them the 'adoption' drill – taking the children from their small hiding places where Lykens wouldn't have found them for about another day while they still prowled around still smelling living, human blood.

They pretended to be passing travellers and took the children to relatives or a kindly mother who could take one more in the next village. When asked why they did this, Selene just shrugged.

They returned back the long way, which is to say roaming round some of the continent like Germany, France, Russia, Finland and Belgium (introducing them to the safe house) and got back in six months. They had taken on Selene's old look, the proud warriors, she thought smiling inwardly, all impressed with how many they killed and how many they saved – perhaps immortality wasn't so bad once you got used to cravings. They had all had their trip ups, which they traded on the ship home.

'It takes a year or more for our kind to not immediately see humans as food' said Móirne, 'our poor mother when she saw our red eyes for the first time, we were tied inside the barn, arms and everything bound with so many ropes we looked like cocoons'

'For a year?' asked Karl, one of the oldest besides Móirne and Selene, at seventy-odd years since his bite

'No,' laughed Móirne, 'for five, she hoped we would starve to death'

'What happened?' he asked

'Sléibhín untied us' she said, smiling wryly

'I woke up and ate the physician' said the very youngest of them all, Arturo, 'and his mother' he still couldn't be relied on around people, being only nine years since his bite

'Only them?' asked Kahn, who had eaten a village on his way to the coast and still often wondered if there were a few 'demons' wandering around now because of him

'It was a hospital, the whole place smelled disgusting' he said, 'so I wondered around and ate the people bleeding and waiting to go into surgery'

'That was clever' said one called Julian

'No, they were just bleeding, I think the nurses wondered why they all suddenly died before they could get to them, some of them were not so badly wounded'

The vampires smiled, jokes like that were common mostly because humans were reliably at the butt of every joke. Like one; what goes black-white-black-white-black-white? A nun rolling down a hill! What goes black-white-red-black-white-red-black-white-red? She met a vampire on the way. This is to say, none of them were that funny, but one got the idea.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Amelia was relieved and ultimately astounded to hear Selene's reports. The fact that there was anything to report on, the fact she was reporting! Viktor could not have known what he had done but essentially the girl had saved the covens from another Kraven/Kirsten, which wasn't good for morale or really anything, the Death Dealers had suffered under Kraven and Kirsten had been a nervous wreck relying on strict values of What Viktor Would Do… not that Viktor had been good at anything except war and finally getting William under control.

Selene, what a warrior. She had, with no consciousness of what she was doing, picked up everything and breathed new life into it. Of course that gained her enemies, the court members never liked her, Kraven would always resent and desire her, but the ones who mattered (in her opinion, still, after centuries of retirement) were all she cared about. It was chillingly like seeing Sonja alive again; she had been the life and soul of them, the hope of the Coven's future and constantly firing the Death Dealers against what she had seen in those days to be uncountable odds against them, in need of huge walls and giant iron gates. Whatever she had done it could not have been worse timed. Lykens were still everywhere, the old breed that were even worse than the new one was getting rarer because they were easier to track, but the new breed Viktor had nursed like a viper at the teat was still crawling in the mountain ranges and the sunnier places vampires never dared to tread. They had desperately needed another Sonja, and Viktor had found one right where she shouldn't be. How like her, she thought wryly, she had never been very obedient. When all this was over she wouldn't be surprised to find a laughing Sonja at the end of it waiting for them, pleased with her latest poke at the order and the covenant.

The trouble was, when one was as old as Amelia, who was even older than Viktor and an ex of Markus's, when one spoke of one you spoke of the other, even Louca seemed still confused about whom she spoke about.

It was almost a pity Selene was so loyal to Viktor, he would doubtless, eventually, do something very ruthless as he normally did and cause another disaster. They could only hope neither Markus nor Selene understood where she came from… she shook her head slightly, changing her mind from these thoughts. If vampires ever had increasing troubles, it was with their dealings with the past, present and future. Especially around people like Selene, around whom time appeared to go in a full circle.


	9. The Twins

In twenty years, Selene trained her team until she was certain what they lacked in experience they at least had in skill and hardness, never really knowing when exactly she should stop and somewhat impressed they had patiently borne her regime of silence, toughness and in some cases utter lack of sympathy and soft-touching. What she managed, however, was to create a team that on the most part stayed together, worked together and felt like a single unit completely aware of each other… she wondered what about them was missing. They lacked an ideal, she supposed, but she had never allowed much room for that except the prayer and the rules and they didn't seem to take it the same her last team had.

'Uponn the fourthe day of the Seckond monthe, one notes the gruppe lacks not in spirite, doth not gainsay an order, fine in all things we muste attende hardfully, yet of their goall, we know not what, if at all, would Unite themm'

Reading her first journal for possible insight she smiled inwardly, a tiny, sympathetic smile at a young woman who knew nothing of what she suddenly was or what she was about to do. Living without Viktor, whom she still had the deepest of respect and regard for (especially since he was the last of 'that group' still alive), was still a trial, she only spoke to Móirne openly about anything, but that was because she had the sensitivity and the Death Dealers code as well as her age on her side for her to speak openly. She was also one of the few truly mourning for the same people she was.

'Twenty years exactly' she said to her in the weapons armoury, stringing a crossbow. She tempered her muscles carefully so as not to snap the bow itself. The splinters took weeks to fully come out.

'I know' said Móirne, more often than not, that was all the answer needed

They were out on a mission, a sweep of Europe, groups of four or five going out to various countries to find, track and kill the plateaued numbers of Lykens. As the two most experienced vampires in the group Selene and Móirne went to explore the most disturbing or dangerous-sounding attacks.

Here in Romania, on the southern border, towns and small villages were being attacked by something only described as a 'white ghost', craving blood and wreaking awful damage, but appearing and disappearing without any real pattern or warning. It just appeared to be, for now, in the rough area where they were now.

They sat on their horses in a forest, having just arrived and now wondering what they should do.

'We can either investigate the attacked villages, or we can set a trap' said Selene quietly, staring stonily at the horizon

'I'd investigate' said Móirne, simply offering her opinion. Selene nodded once and pulled her horse to face the next village. They had got directions from the last town and warnings but no details of the 'pale beast' whose lust for blood, the inn-keeper claimed, was beyond even say a vampire's thirst. Which they also had to watch for, he warned, they had massacred a whole series of towns in the mountains. Selene had not spoken for hours after that.

As they trotted to the village Selene was pondering aloud with Móirne what the creature could be.

'My best try is an immortal, gone insane or the like' she said

'I thought of a bitten mortal who hasn't quite turned' said Selene

Typical of you to think of the worst, darkest scenario, thought Móirne, who wasn't sure if such a thing was even possible; a mortal died or lived as a result of a bite, their breed (as opposed to her own) had a poor success rate, a faster, harsher 'turning', and the body only sometimes made it through, it didn't seem to brook any half-way house.

They paid for a night at the first inn they found and settled themselves into the public house across the street, staying cloaked as strangers would when they didn't wish to be seen, disturbed or spoken to. Móirne, who could keep track of every conversation in the room without having to discern voices, only spoke when something of interest came up. They pretended to sip their beers and murmured to each other.

'There have been sightings near around, hunters are thinking of trying to find it… no one's yet got close enough to try, or returned if they got too close… smaller villages are going out to bigger ones for shelter… 400 arrived only this month… there won't be many victims out there… except a couple further out east towards the coast… he's going east they think'

'They think?' asked Selene, keen to get answers quickly before she got the serious urge to bite someone. Having 'gorged' as she had twenty years ago it was a struggle to go back to animal blood, and even harder to resist any given opportunity. Móirne flickered in and out of her mind and understood.

'The last two villages to be attacked line up east, the thing knows it's best chances lie in hard-to-reach places just inland from the sea'

'Is that your thoughts?' asked Selene, thinking that was a bit too intelligent for this lot of red, quaffing hunters and farmers

'Yes' said Móirne, smiling

They left, leaving their full mugs of beer on the counter to be grabbed at by someone and a coin of bronze for the barman. They were watched as they left, and Selene mentally prayed no one followed.

'It's alright' said Móirne

They rode out east on a hard gallop, getting Selene as far away from temptation as they could. The truth was they could run faster than the horses could and for longer so it felt like forever before the lights of the village/ town disappeared into the distance.

They rode for two days, Selene noticed as time went by, as they got closer, Móirne was having problems. One description of the monster they were hunting was said to have red eyes, white and very shiny skin, and the speed of no man, and she was nearly shaking afterwards, and blamed it lamely on too many voices all at once in her head.

Selene didn't ask. She had learned, from everything she had lived through (specifically this week being a certain anniversary) not to ask, to keep some space. She wanted to know, but cared too much to delve too deeply.

Problem with being immortal was that all the hypocrisies in life became all too apparent.

They found the next town and were there just as an attack slaughtered a child, two adults and three horses, Selene had only just arrived to see a pale thing move into the trees, and hadn't found it. Móirne examined the bodies and sighed

'I'm at a loss' she said, looking up as Selene crouched opposite her, picking up the man's arm and looking at it from all angles

'It's somewhere between a tear and a chew,' she said, thinking aloud, 'teeth too sharp for most animals we know, there's at least four large teeth close-set at the front, too big for a wolf or anything else, the closest I can think of is a bear'

'I also' said Móirne, who had decided this before Selene had even looked.

'So this isn't a bear, is pale, is faster than a bear or a wolf, and goes on attack frenzies, from anything between two days and three weeks, this is not its worst attack and its full moon… I think it must be something we've never encountered'

Móirne nodded, her face expressionless, slightly tired of Selene's habit of listing the obvious

'Which way did it go?' she asked, having hung behind to ensure there weren't more

'North-east-east' said Selene, now looking at the child, it had fewer slashes and wounds, and there were fainter teeth marks over the wound that had severed her carotid artery.

'It's a blood drinker' she said, picking up the child under the head and showing it to Móirne, and they then noticed the spinal cord was snapped, with only a small collision-mark at the site of it

'That's…' said Selene and Móirne's eyes were clouded with confusion

'It's a very human thing to do, aim precisely and hit hard enough to break the spine…' she murmured

'This is something inhuman but not far off… perhaps we are not the only immortals'

This was a habit of Selene's, Móirne noticed, she included the Lykens in the 'we' of the immortals, whatever the battle and however bitter the war she still recognised the link they shared. There were myths largely regarded as such in the vampire legends; vampires that didn't have any means of dying in the sun or in battle, half-breeds, demons of many descriptions, evil spirits, possession by ghosts, and so on. Selene had never paid them any attention until she wondered if any of these demons could be blood drinkers.

'The adults are not given the same treatment… they were all alive to be savaged' said Móirne, examining the adults more closely.

'We must not be seen here' said Selene, and they ran back to collect their horses. The horses had been exchanged with two pieces of silver each for studier, more durable mounts. Selene had given a slightly intimidating opponent to the horse-dealer who had wanted gold.

They rode on to the ruins of another town, burnt nearly to the ground, and Móirne gave the signal; someone or something was still here. They decided, for the sake of the horses, to stay mounted, but they decided later when knowing the thing was close but not close enough to dismount and leave them as bait.

They had hidden in the ruins of the bell tower, its bell having fallen through to the bottom and lay in pieces on the ground. The beast, Móirne could sense, was too hungry to resist for long.

Till dawn? Asked Selene

Perhaps, I think not, I doubt it would recognise dawn's meaning

There was something about the way she thought of dawn that made Selene pause. Móirne's face remained blank but her attention was on what Selene wanted to say rather than what she was actually thinking, which was often about what she wanted to say, so therefore not worth the extra energy. Selene had sensed something lacking in her, or perhaps something odd, she was neither sure nor willing to question seeing as her friend was really more preoccupied with the thing out there.

A pale flash, it moved so fast even for Selene she couldn't tell what it was, it had flung itself from cover and leapt so fast and so high she didn't even know how many legs it walked on. The first horse fell with a scream and it panicked, further shielding the beast attacking it from view. It then tried to make another dash for cover, passing the walls of a ruined house.

Selene managed to get a shot at it through one of the windows as it flashed past, so fast, too fast. A shot rewarded with a grunt, but Móirne had stopped moving, was so still all Selene could think was that she had been shocked by it, or somehow stunned in some way.

'Shoot it; whatever it is it's…'

'It's him' said Móirne, and before Selene could ask, she had jumped down

Brother, stop!

Selene, who had jumped down with her, stood dumb. She understood immediately, through some animal instinct or something similar, that the white blur was a face she hadn't thought of as part of the living world for forty years, and that Móirne was translating…

Brother, I'm here, it's me!

… **Sister**

He came from the trees, utterly naked, looking completely savage. His voice, coming through as a growl and translated by Móirne's mind, left traces of Móirne's own emotions as she was too distracted to give a simple, clean translation. They were speaking in Irish; she perceived through the traces her brother had always hated languages.

**Are we in Hell? Please tell me**

It's alright, you're alive!

**I don't know why, Móirne!**

Well the sun doesn't hurt us… perhaps we truly cannot die

Something else passed, Móirne simply didn't translate, until he called out in pain

'Móirne!'

It's alright!

She was crying, clutching her brother who nearly crushed her in a desperate hug of a wretched man.

Selene could only stare, she had seen him be torn apart by the Lykens, his blood has soaked into the ground before her own eyes, he was dead!

'Tell me what is happening' she commanded, somewhere between shock and war-instinct

Móirne took her brother's hand and led him gently, like leading a child, back over. Selene noticed he had already healed. Vampires didn't heal that fast.

'We know we're vampires, we drink blood, our skin is colder than humans, but we don't burn in the sun, it appears,' she said, indicating him, 'that we can't die even when we shouldn't live'

'How…?'

'We bite, and spread the affliction, but ours is a venom, we have watched it burn through metal, and not… what Tanis thinks'

Tanis, who was studying how vampires were vampires, believed their race was somehow more like a disease rather than a gift of the lucky few. Needless to say, not many liked nor agreed with this.

It was making sense but it didn't help at all. The man before her, to her eyes, was covered in awful scars and his eyes, while not just red as they Móirne's when she was ready for battle but yellow at other times, they blazed in a way that made her think of burning metal, he looked like a wild being incapable of anything but what he was now doing. He did, in fairness, look as confused as the two women felt.

'Selene' he said suddenly, his eyes flickering in recognition, 'it is you' he confirmed, bewilderment giving way to some fierce kind of revelation

'Did you send the message?' he asked, still seemingly unsure of how he should treat her or even feel

'I did' said Selene, equally unsure

You should see them, and her, Móirne told her brother, she's nothing like she was, her heart's been broken

**They all…?**

Yes, I'm sorry

**No, we… she survived… it is what it was to be… their honour is complete then**

'What does that mean?' asked Selene, finally within grasp of the last piece, the bit only the dead knew

'To send the Command' he said, his voice so empty Selene wondered if the poor man was even sure if he was here himself, 'it is the last piece of the whole honour… we send the messenger… and die on the field… the messenger completes the action of the Last Command…'

'And then honour is fulfilled' finished Selene, suddenly feeling something she had long clung to fall away from her with terrifying weight and finality.

'You used me' she whispered, staring at him, and he stared back, somehow less vacant but now completely dumb, as if speaking took away his self and being.

So many things made sense. Why Kirsten, who adored Viktor and was appointed by him, was frozen out, forced into a position as leader but shut from the group comradeship because…

Why Selene, with Viktor's blood in her, also adoring Viktor and yet also very useful, was made leader within a century of being bitten (imagine a teenager celebrity being made President or world leader), was made leader…

Why Helen had not chosen leadership, why none of them wanted it…

Both she and Kirsten had been chosen to be the sacrifice for this Whole Completed Honour.

The Death Dealers had built for themselves a Death Dealers afterlife paradise, a place one went to by living by the sacred Prayer, Rules and unwritten traditions… because with sacrificing one of their own they could do the very last tradition (and heavily weighing it in layers of myth, honour and mysticism) and thus complete everything Death Dealers could possibly do, and having done that duty they could 'rest in peace', in a haven made of honour, rules, heroic deeds and whatever else…

Selene continued to stare

'You chose me because you knew Kirsten wouldn't do it' she said quietly, 'you knew Kirsten would die rather than go and turn her back on you all, and you made me… because you knew I'd rather die than disobey you… you used me to finish it'

Móirne obviously had nothing to do with it, but she'd known. Selene could feel herself bleeding and refused to look away from them both. She'd only joined after it was done… when all signs of it had been erased and she wouldn't have to do something like that

'We all live to choose how we die' said Sléibhín, now showing how much mental pain he was in; he had not died; centuries of mental conditioning and wanting little else in his whole life had been struck away the minute he had regained consciousness.

'You used us, you used the meaning of Death Dealers to serve yourselves!' snarled Selene

'What is left of the Covens worth protecting?' asked Sléibhín simply

'So you use their honour, the idea of the honour of protecting the Covens, on which you cast disdain, to wrap yourselves in a justified suicide, and _my_ honour as the last… horse-shoe nail!'

They looked at each other, and Selene understood. The Covens were a mess of court-members and a cesspool of centuries-old politics, all of which the world was well happier without, all the Death Dealers had done was salvage what was left of the old Covens' history and honour, to live the true meaning of the honour themselves, and to die in it. But what was the point, dying for a cause you yourself did not believe in because the people you were protecting were better off dead… so you could only die for yourself. And the others who also believed in this…

There was a long period of silence. Selene felt oddly light. She had carried their honour about with her for twenty years, starting from its building inside her over a century ago, and suddenly… it was just shadows and words.

And she had led the younger group halfway down the same path.

'Go' she said at last

'Selene' began Móirne

'You can't come back,' said Selene softly, emotionlessly, 'they will find out, they would eventually realise… you can't come back… and I need him gone'

Móirne nodded 'I'm sorry' she said

Selene shook her head, allowing her friend some sympathy, 'You at least had no part in it' she said kindly

'I don't deserve that' she said, casting her eyes to the ground

'No,' said Selene, 'but that's the point'

The two of them turned around and walked away. Selene turned round and got on her horse, having to calm it down and walk it a little way herself to bring it from panic. She rode home, stopping only during the day, and even travelling through the old tunnels in the mountains and out through the other side, which was usually covered in trees, and did not stop.

She returned in what felt like hours. She looked at her crew of Death Dealers smiling and exchanging stories and made them a simple announcement.

'Don't ask me where this is from, but the rules, the prayer and everything we do, that isn't killing Lykens, is to stop, now. We have our own honour like everyone else.'

At that, she turned, went to her room, and threw her journals on the fire.

It was an odd feeling, she thought to herself before falling asleep. Suddenly only trusting yourself was liberating, no one else to trust in was the best feeling she'd ever felt in her life. She still served Viktor willingly and lovingly, her father and mentor, the only one who cared nothing of the Death Dealers honour and valour and so on but still had the uncompromising set of values…

As she fell asleep, Selene realised she wasn't smiling.

She wouldn't do so again for a good few centuries yet.


	10. The End, for now

Thirty Years Later…

Selene had drifted away from the coven and the Death Dealers completely. Since arriving back to the mansion and informing Amelia that Móirne had left to live independently, she had broken all the things that had made the Death Dealers what they had been for centuries. The Prayer was recorded, as were all the old ways of the Death Dealers since the covens formed, and the book was put away. Since Tanis was the only person allowed to know and read the history of the covens she swore him (quite violently) into secrecy, before the awakening of Viktor led to his exile and Selene's secrets were forever lost.

Selene sat on a roof, sitting in a deep shadow cast by the chimneys that were being thrown up everywhere by the richer households of the Russian cities. It was useful, not only for them because it meant better cover, but also because they could often find the odd robber or assassin in the same hidey-holes to provide the best kind of refuelling and strengthening elixir with no cost to anyone who cared.

Selene no spent every mission alone. Under her instructions, the other Death Dealers went out in pairs or groups, as the oldest and by far most experienced, Selene took the liberty of doing what she wanted (killing Lykens, alone, every night, alone) and checking back every so often to receive news of Lyken numbers or strange rumours in different countries.

Selene then abolished the formal channels to speak with the covens and the vampires who sat idle for centuries chewing the same rancid politics over and over. She knew no such barrier was needed; any Death Dealer quickly formed a deep resentment against the 'upstairs people' (even though their armoury and training room was actually now on the same floor) for their arrogance, idleness and lack of gratitude or respect for them who pitted themselves again and again against the foulest thing the world ever created and died doing it. No pacts or agreements were made, she noticed after this had happened, no deals or contracts. This was not surprising, twp parties who could not see each other as equals would never dignify each other this way.

Markus reigned a divided house with such disinterestedness that rivalled Selene's own. His disgust for the 'upstairs people' nearly matched his odd barely-concealed hatred for the Death Dealers. He looked, thought Selene, like a caged beast. His wings seemed to bring him no freedom and his lack of regard for the rules (and thus went hunting for isolated villages for human blood gorges) made the house find its own balance.

In the early years of the covens, Selene knew everyone had been united, the difference between the Death Dealers and the court members was then very little and often ignored, but as the war had raged and only the Death Dealers lost valued friends, as the court members sat back drinking blood from stocks of human captives, the rift had grown. The old ways formed, to trace a line between those who died and those whose sake they died for, and the last of the respect they held for each other, Selene realised, was used up in forming the Prayer, the channels, the formal ways of making agreements and pacts… and finally, centuries later, Selene had brought about the end of it.

It at least gave the 'upstairs people' something new to talk about, she thought to herself, watching the night. The court members now hated her as much as they had once admired her, the atmosphere she strode through to find the armoury was a cold, arrogant, unfriendly one. She had enjoyed this to begin with, as it was the mark of the end of the empty pride she had done all of this to remove. Amelia, having had the full story from her, had understood. She had been watching this decay of relations between the two parties for half a millennia, and was not surprised at all Selene was the one who had finally cut the last bonds.

What a busy few years the girl had had, she thought, Viktor had chosen a girl to lead the covens, unofficially, to a bright new future, and this she had done, having cut out all the things he had liked about the past. She was stronger than everyone else, and had Viktor's authority within her very veins, she had been chosen to lead and thus betray her last family. She had tried to resurrect the old ways in the new Dealers, and then found out _why_ the old ways were still around at all, why they had not died their natural death centuries ago. She had then, being the last of the old-ways-followers, taken the authority so heavily bestowed on her by the Death Dealers (and in some sense, by Viktor) to destroy the bonds of the old honour and the decayed respect between the parties, not only as a final end to the hypocrisy but, if one looked with a more subtle eye, as a reaction to what had been done to her. She had been built up, treated with honour, and finally abused and, in most senses, destroyed.

She had recognised she was a living incarnation of the old ways, her code of conduct and her honour, all that made her what she had been until recently, was exactly the same as the Rules of the Old Ways, and in her despair, rage and feeling of unutterable emptiness, she had left a hole where the rules had been.

_She is fragile, Viktor_, Amelia thought for the sake of the memories' records, _she will never break by force, nothing is going to shatter that armour of hers, she will with all likelihood forget herself as much as the covens will forget the old ways, she will kill every Lyken she can find, and find them she will, because they began all this, they are the reason she now lives as empty and as cold as she will now until she dies. She is what you wished for your daughter to become, she will obey your every word, as you are the last who has never betrayed her. Underneath the warrior, I fear her very soul has died, or at least will always live a sorry existence. I make special record of this, Viktor, not only because this is all that has happened in my reign, but because I told you this would happen. I would warn you; you are the one who made this happen, should she ever discover it, I would fear for your life – I do not doubt Markus would be willing to join her. She has brought us to where we could not go, and has made the covens a new thing, but the Death Dealers she has trained do not live to protect the court, they live to kill the Lykens. They have their own honour and the simple rules of killing Lykens and not being discovered, and Selene made this. I would add, Viktor, this may not be the last great act she ever does. _

Thanks for all the reviews, support, and just for reading it really, this is the end. Now for my next project, whatever that is, hope you enjoy that too!


End file.
